A mental health nurse, Brenda Mawuse Agbo, has called for the inclusion of mental health assessments in standard pre-marital testing.
Speaking on the GTV Breakfast Show, Agbo emphasised that while couples often focus on genotype and blood group tests, understanding a partner’s mental well-being is equally crucial.
“When you’re getting married, don’t just do genotype and blood group tests. You should also undergo a mental state assessment, because you can never tell what someone is dealing with internally,” she advised.
Agbo highlighted that mental health issues are not always visible and can be concealed.
“Some people have anger issues that they are actually keeping on the low. Some people are serial killers walking about as good gentlemen and gentlewomen. Mental health is not written on the face. You can identify someone who is a drug addict. But if I’m a psychopath, it’s not written on my face,” she noted.
She stressed the importance of mental health screenings to prevent potential domestic tragedies, citing instances where individuals with untreated mental health issues have committed acts of violence within families.
“We see spousal killings and everybody’s like, ‘this marriage was going so well, they were so nice together. But the person already had that tendency,” she stated.
According to her, incorporating mental health assessments into pre-marital procedures could help identify and address such issues early on.
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