US mental health under growing strain in Covid-19 era
Counselling given to 5-million more Americans in the two weeks to August 2 than in the same period a year earlier
12 August 2021 - 15:49
byAlex Tanzi
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
A Bronx resident receives a Pfizer shot, in New York, the US. Picture: REUTERS/DAVID DEE DELGADO
It has been nearly a year since the US census bureau started asking Americans about the mental health effects of the pandemic — and the latest survey shows just how much worse things have gotten since then.
About 22.3-million Americans recently received counselling or therapy from mental health professionals, according to new data based on research in the two weeks to August 2. That is an increase of more than 5-million compared with late August last year, when the bureau’s regular Household Pulse survey first posed the question.
There was an even bigger jump in the number of Americans who said they needed that kind of help but did not get it. That figure is up by about one-third from last summer, to 23.6-million. And 46.4-million people are now taking prescription drugs to help with emotional or mental health, up by nearly 9-million over the period.
The survey shows how mental health issues triggered by Covid-19 have become more widespread even as the virus itself grew less deadly — with consequences for society and the economy that may be around for a while.
“We do have a collective trauma,” said Janis Whitlock, a director of the Jed Foundation, a nonprofit group that promotes mental health assistance for young people. “We’ve never been in this kind of collective state of uncertainty.”
Even before the pandemic, researchers were focusing on mental health as a serious economic problem as well as a medical one. One study found that “poor mental health days” are likely to result in tens of billions of dollars in lost output for the economy, making it one of the costliest forms of sickness.
Another study argued that after factoring in “invisible costs”, including early retirement, the economic losses from mental health problems are comparable to those caused by heart disease, and worse than cancer or diabetes.
The census study suggests that the deterioration has been especially severe among younger adults. About 27-million people in the 18-39 age group now receive counselling or take prescription medication for mental health reasons, up from 20.2-million in the late August 2020 survey.
While the survey does not cover those under 18 years old, other research has highlighted the dire effects of the pandemic on children too, including a rise in teen suicide attempts. And data released recently by the American Psychological Association shows the spread of a wider range of second-order pandemic effects, including unwanted weight gain, increased consumption of alcohol, and lack of sleep.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
US mental health under growing strain in Covid-19 era
Counselling given to 5-million more Americans in the two weeks to August 2 than in the same period a year earlier
It has been nearly a year since the US census bureau started asking Americans about the mental health effects of the pandemic — and the latest survey shows just how much worse things have gotten since then.
About 22.3-million Americans recently received counselling or therapy from mental health professionals, according to new data based on research in the two weeks to August 2. That is an increase of more than 5-million compared with late August last year, when the bureau’s regular Household Pulse survey first posed the question.
There was an even bigger jump in the number of Americans who said they needed that kind of help but did not get it. That figure is up by about one-third from last summer, to 23.6-million. And 46.4-million people are now taking prescription drugs to help with emotional or mental health, up by nearly 9-million over the period.
The survey shows how mental health issues triggered by Covid-19 have become more widespread even as the virus itself grew less deadly — with consequences for society and the economy that may be around for a while.
“We do have a collective trauma,” said Janis Whitlock, a director of the Jed Foundation, a nonprofit group that promotes mental health assistance for young people. “We’ve never been in this kind of collective state of uncertainty.”
Even before the pandemic, researchers were focusing on mental health as a serious economic problem as well as a medical one. One study found that “poor mental health days” are likely to result in tens of billions of dollars in lost output for the economy, making it one of the costliest forms of sickness.
Another study argued that after factoring in “invisible costs”, including early retirement, the economic losses from mental health problems are comparable to those caused by heart disease, and worse than cancer or diabetes.
The census study suggests that the deterioration has been especially severe among younger adults. About 27-million people in the 18-39 age group now receive counselling or take prescription medication for mental health reasons, up from 20.2-million in the late August 2020 survey.
While the survey does not cover those under 18 years old, other research has highlighted the dire effects of the pandemic on children too, including a rise in teen suicide attempts. And data released recently by the American Psychological Association shows the spread of a wider range of second-order pandemic effects, including unwanted weight gain, increased consumption of alcohol, and lack of sleep.
Bloomberg
How to find your mojo again in these trying times
Focus on athletes’ mental health puts spotlight on their social media use
Covid-weary world faces a reality check
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Most Read
Published by Arena Holdings and distributed with the Financial Mail on the last Thursday of every month except December and January.