“Mental health challenges”: The Hidden
Crisis of Alcohol Abuse Among Zambian Women and Youth
Picture for illustration only: A lady in drunken state
Alcohol consumption in
Zambia is no longer just a weekend pastime, it has grown into a quiet public
health emergency, especially among women and youth. What was once seen as a
male-dominated vice is now tearing through households, disrupting mental
health, breaking families, and, in some cases, ending lives.
For 32-year-old Nelly
Nankamba, the cost of alcohol addiction was more than just a hangover. It was
the slow unraveling of her life.
“I lost my beautiful
marriage of 12 years,” she says with tears in her eyes. “My husband would come
home and find me drunk, food not prepared, the children not bathed. Eventually,
he gave up.”
When her husband left
for a two-year peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic, the situation
worsened. Nankamba spiraled into deep addiction, frequenting nightclubs,
drinking excessively, and engaging in reckless behavior.
“I ended up having
affairs. When my husband returned and learned about what I had done, he
immediately asked me to leave. He took me back to my parents,” she recounts.
The shame and guilt
triggered a severe mental health breakdown. Her parents, believing she had been
bewitched, took her to spiritual healers and traditional doctors. But nothing
worked.
It wasn’t until she was
admitted to Chelstone Health Facility and later transferred to Levy Mwanawasa
University Teaching Hospital that she was diagnosed with alcohol-induced
psychosis. After three months of intensive treatment and counseling, she began
to recover, slowly from health mental challenge, under the care of her parents.
In Kamanga Compound,
Catherine Sakala watches her daughter deteriorate from the same affliction. Her
daughter left her marriage in pursuit of a free-spirited lifestyle dominated by
alcohol and bad company. “She would disappear for days, drinking, roaming with
friends and strange men,” says Mrs. Sakala.
The young woman’s
erratic behavior escalated until the family was forced to admit her to Levy
Mwanawasa Hospital. Doctors revealed her mental health had been severely
impacted by alcohol addiction.
“Despite our
efforts to stop her, she kept sneaking out to drink. Then, one night, around 2
AM, I received a call, my daughter had been found lifeless,” Mrs. Sakala says,
her voice cracking.
Now, she pleads with
young women to turn away from destructive habits and embrace meaningful,
productive lives.
Even spiritual leaders
are not immune. Pastor Jason Kabamba of Lusaka has spent years trying to
rehabilitate his son, who suffers from chronic alcohol addiction. “I’m a
preacher, but as a father, I’ve felt helpless,” he admits.
His son would steal from
the family just to buy alcohol. Over time, he developed severe mental health
problems and eventually disappeared from home. “I pray I find him alive and in
a state where he can recover. I want his story to serve as a testimony for
other parents,” says Pastor Kabamba.
At the heart of this
crisis is a rising mental health burden, often overlooked in the broader
conversation around alcohol abuse.
Picture for Illustration only:
According to psychiatric
nurse Susan Kabanda at Levy Mwanawasa Hospital, the facility receives a good
number of women and youth each week struggling with mental health
complications linked to alcohol. “We see cases of depression, anxiety, and
full-blown psychosis. Some women have developed dependency syndromes so severe
that they require long-term admission,” she says.
Kabanda also revealed a
disturbing trend, many women are using informal savings groups, locally known
as Chilimba, to finance their alcohol habits.
“These are women who
should be saving for businesses or their children’s and home needs, but instead
they’re pooling money to drink,” she says.
Experts point to a mix
of socio-economic and cultural factors fueling the crisis. Peer pressure,
entrenched social norms, and economic hardship play a major role. For
low-income individuals, alcohol often becomes both an escape and a form of
recreation in communities lacking entertainment alternatives.
“Alcohol is easily accessible.
In some areas, it’s even sold within home shops,” says Kabanda. “We need a
national conversation about this.”
Stakeholders are urging
a multi-pronged approach: tighter regulations on alcohol sales, more
community-based education, and increased access to mental health services.
Religious leaders, health professionals, and local authorities must come
together to address this growing epidemic.
But for people like
Nelly Nankamba, recovery is a daily battle.
“I thank my parents and
the counselors who never gave up on me,” she says. “Now I want to use my story
to help other women break free before it’s too late.”
By Samuel Mbewe
Samuel
Saizi Mbewe is a Zambian health and environment journalist with over five years
of experience writing for local and international publications. His main areas
of interest include health, climate change, reproductive health, HIV, TB, and
vaccines.
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