It’s 6 a.m here in Sunyani, Ghana. The roosters won’t keep quiet, the shop keepers have begun their morning routines and the taxis have begun honking their horns. Yet in the midst of all this noise, I find peace knowing that I am home.

Since arriving here, I have had a large mix of emotions – from being excited to finally be in Ghana- to being exhausted after sitting on a bus for 8 hours from Accra to Sunyani. At the end of it all, it is all worth it.

As soon as I arrived in Sunyani, I was greeted by my aunt, uncle, my cousins, my grandma and grandpa. The last time I was in Ghana I was four years old. It’s been 21 years since I’ve seen some of my family. It was a shock and I was a bit overwhelmed but nothing prepared me for what was coming next.

I had known my grandma was ill but I was not aware to the extent of her illness. As soon as I saw her I knew things were not right. She was unable to recognize my mother nor my sister. Her voice trembled as she attempted to repeat anything and everything my mom would say. I gave her a big hug and said “Hi grandma! Do you remember me? I’m Tina!” She stared right into my eyes. I was waiting for her to say something, anything at all. But she retreated and went to the bathroom. My heart shattered. How could my grandma not remember me? How could she not recall coming to Canada 12 years ago. How could she not recall our phone calls.

I burst into tears. My mom comforted me and told me that since the passing of 3 of her siblings, my grandma had stopped speaking. The shock and trauma of loosing 3 of her children, one after another without any solid reasoning as to why they passed had hurt her so deeply she was unable to speak.

As I sit here writing this, tears flow from my eyes. If only grandma was living elsewhere maybe she would be able to receive some speech therapy, or maybe she would be able to deal with the trauma by knowing what exactly caused my aunt and my two uncles to pass. If only she was able to go to rehab. If only.

Many attribute my grandmother’s illness to old age, which may be a major factor; but I truly believe that access to mental health services, no matter the age, is imperative. Whether it’s inpatient or outpatient facilities, no one should ever have to go through a traumatic life event without being able to access services to help relieve them of any pain and stress that they have incurred.

From the little information I was able to gather, Sunyani Municipal Hospital will soon have a mental health unit. I’m unable to find any information on the progress of this unit but I am hoping that it will be completed soon.

Seeing my grandma has added fuel to my passion for mental health. I pray and hope that one day she will return to her full capacity. Until then, I have no problem reminding grandma who I am while taking her for walks around the village.

Peace, love and happiness.

-Augustina Antwiaah