You’re scared of losing your job, worried or someone you’re getting sick of, and online meetings with family and friends you haven’t seen in months. Locking COVID-19 has completely changed daily life for most people around the world. Physical speed is the new norm and a very important tool in the fight against the pandemic.
However, the effects of the lock on mental health are frightening – especially for young people under 30 and people with preexisting mental health issues. This is the conclusion of a new study from the University of Copenhagen, University College London, Sorbonne University, INSERM and the University of Groningen. The study builds on data from 200,000 citizens across Europe.
As part of the COVID-Minds collaborative network, researchers have collected and analyzed mental health data from four different countries (Denmark, France, the Netherlands and the UK) during the first lockout. spring and early summer 2020.
‘We have examined various mental health factors such as loneliness, anxiety and anxiety related to COVID-19. The highest levels of loneliness were observed among young people and people with preexisting mental health illnesses’, says Professor Tibor V. Varga from the Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen .
‘Psychological stress is an obvious risk factor for long-term mental illness and a very bad future. Therefore, it is very important to know how locks affect people, so we have a better chance of preventing long – term effects. ‘
The researchers suggest that the subgroups identified by the study as particularly prone to experiencing loneliness and anxiety should be closely followed to prevent future challenges.
Mental health should be a parallel concern to the introduction of the virus
The study is made up of mental health data from 200,000 citizens from the four European countries during the first lockout (March 2020 to June 2020). In all four countries, the highest levels of loneliness and anxiety were observed in March and early April, at the beginning of the lockout. These results slowly subsided over the coming months as the countries gradually opened up.
Even though the four countries have different approaches to treating the pandemic, the mental health reactions appear to be very similar and very important to pay attention to. to avoid long-term consequences.
Mental health has emerged as a very important parallel concern of this pandemic. While we need, of course, to spread the virus and address the obvious crises that exist, we also need to be mindful of the potential negative psychological effects’, said Professor Naja Hulvej Rod from the Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen.
‘People under 30 and people with a history of mental illness could benefit from specific public health interventions to prevent or counteract the ill effects of the pandemic’.
The ‘Standing Together – at a Distance’ research project regularly collects data from Denmark to monitor the status and impact of mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data collected from June 2020 to date confirms the results of the study: Lockdown has a negative impact on COVID-19 anxiety, loneliness and anxiety.
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