Grim US mental health statistics in times of Covid-19
Mental health is an important part of overall health and well-being. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices.
The drug & opioid crisis is declared a public health emergency (2017)
The state of mental health in the United States (Graph A above) has been a major concern for a few years, and now these numbers are even more pronounced now with Covid-19. The CDC has put out more details around mental health during the current ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
During June 24–30, 2020, U.S. adults reported considerably elevated adverse mental health conditions associated with COVID-19
From the CDC, symptoms of anxiety disorder and depressive disorder increased considerably in the United States from April–June of 2020, compared with the same period in 2019. To assess mental health, substance use, and suicidal ideation during the pandemic, representative panel surveys were conducted among adults aged ≥18 years across the United States from June 24–30, 2020. Some of the key findings are shown in Graph 2 & Table 1.
In Conclusion, June 2020 statistics show elevated levels of adverse mental health conditions, substance use, and suicidal ideation as reported by adults in the United States. The US is looking at a 3x prevalence in anxiety and 4x prevalence in depression (graph 3 below) compared to the same time last year. These mental health statistics are only going to get worse, as most of the United States is still under some sort of Covid-19 related restriction.
Blog source:
