Mental Disorders and COVID-19- Cheryl Pruitt
Cheryl Pruitt, A mind is a place of glass, easy to adore, and quickly shattered. 2020 has proven to be a challenging year in every aspect of life, but the toll it took on all our mental heaths was immense. Cheryl Pruitt, A record increase in mental issues was recorded over the course of this pandemic which was not only alarming but also something of great concern.
With the education institute closed and online teaching/ learning in place, the young minds had a lot on the plate, a lot more than they were able to handle. This change in the whole system resulted in many mental issues in youngsters. A survey conducted on 193 university going students concluded that 138 students out of the total sample size had elevated stress and anxiety levels which were due to concerns about their health and the health of their loved ones. Cheryl Pruitt Most of the students faces difficulty concentrating, which ultimately rose concerns about their academic performances. The monotony of the routine in quarantine made most of them face disruptive sleep patterns which led to headaches and mismanagement of time. The decreased social interaction made them feel lonely and left out (“Effects of COVID-19 on college students’ mental health in the United States: Interview survey study,” 2020).
Even the elderly was not speared of this spell of madness. As evident, they have no or significantly fewer social media interactions and felt more at bay than the younger people who could use social media and technology to divert their minds. Cheryl Pruitt Moreover, the death and diagnosis of people their age made them fearful for their own lives, and they started to dwell in constant fear of the pandemic (“Psychological impact of COVID-19 on older adults,” 2020).
The parents and teachers who had to cope up with their personal and professional lives while keeping up with the new form of the school had aggravated stress levels,Cheryl Pruitt making them lash out more often than usual. The immense pressure of maintaining the quality of teaching intact on the teachers made them stressed more than usual.
The people who suffered the most were the healthcare workers who had to work on the frontlines with the infected patients. They faced 23–44% higher anxiety levels due to the fear of being infected or infecting their loved ones. 50.4% more health workers than usual described themselves to be depressed as they had long working hours and the conditions they faced were adverse. There was a 34% increase in healthcare Cheryl Pruitt workers reporting experiencing insomnia which made their performance not as good as usual (“Physical and mental health impacts of COVID-19 on healthcare workers: A scoping review,” n.d.).
The pandemic took a massive toll on every one of us and still, continues to do so but no other time would be better than this to teach our children how to cope up with all these issues by fighting them bravely ourselves and becoming an example for them. We need to be brave for those who matter to us, as they look up to us, so we can’t fall.
