Migration

Human beings have moved from place to place since time immemorial. The reasons for and the duration of these migrations put extraordinary stress on individuals and their families. 

Most of us love the place that we are born and brought up in, many of us swear by our motherland to show the devotion and love we hold towards it. However, there are a few of the not so fortunate ones who don’t seem to have the same words to say about their land. It’s not because they disrespect their home land or don’t have love towards it, but it could be for many unpleasant reasons. Perhaps some are born in difficult times when there could be crisis and they were forced to move out or it could also be for various reasons, some of them being unimaginable too.

How does it feel to leave your place or comfort or the place where you belong and move out? Does the other land make you feel welcome and comfortable? Have the scars being cured or the tears being dried? Well, the answer to these questions may not be that easily found.  

Migration is a way to move from one place to another in order to live and work. Movement of people from their home to another city, state or country for a job, shelter or some other reasons is called migration. People also migrate to have a better life, better prospects or are sometimes forced to migrate with out any choice.

The impact of migration can be positive or negative in nature depending upon circumstances.

Lets’ take a look at some of the positive impacts of migration.

• Unemployment is reduced and people get better job opportunities.
• Migration helps in improving the quality of life of people.
• It helps to improve social life of people as they learn about new culture, customs, and languages which helps to improve brotherhood among people.
• Migration of skilled workers leads to a greater economic growth of the region.
• Children get better opportunities for higher education.
• The population density is reduced and the birth rate decreases.

The negative impact of migration could be

• The sudden change of population from one section to another (rural and urban or vice versa)
• Having large population puts too much pressure on natural resources, amenities and services.
• Migration changes the population of a place, therefore, the distribution of the population is uneven in India.
• Many migrants are completely illiterate and uneducated, therefore, they are not only unfit for most jobs, but also lack basic knowledge and life skills.
• challenges makes it difficult for them unable to live a normal and healthy life.
• Exploitation, difficulty in maintaining well-being 

Migration and Well-being

Many people do migrate to improve their well-being. When we speak of well-being, we refer to holistic well-being (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual). Research suggests that there is a little association between income levels and mental health in developing countries that Well-being is also linked to the   (Das et al., 2007), which means to say that people migrate to have better prospects to earn better income.

Some other health conditions that are reported due to migration are:

Eating Disorders

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Ethnic density and social isolation

Depression

Mental disorders

Health issues due to climatic changes

Here are a few testimonials shared by a few of them who have migrated from their birth place and are living in new places.

They most miss the food and friends. The freedom to call the homeland their home and the familiarity of the place. Loneliness at times, not knowing what to do.

What they have got from the new place?

They have learnt the new way of accepting their culture and traditions, new friends, freedom, better prospects.

Conclusions

Migration remains an enigma for the health experts because not all migrants go through the same experiences and or settle in similar social contexts. Health Experts must take a range of these factors into account when assessing and planning intervention strategies aimed at the individual and his or her social context. No matter where you stay, just remember to be yourself, your presence makes the place your own. Until then let us all transform happily!