COVID-19 causes upsurge in anxiety spectrum disorder among adults and kids: Experts
India already had a high but under-treated burden of mental illnesses, but with COVID 19 ushering in a prolonged state of threat, uncertainty and insecurity, we are witnessing a significant rise in cases of anxiety spectrum disorder, OCD, depression and suicidal tendencies among adults and kids, stated Dr. Preeti Singh, senior consultant – clinical psychology at Paras Hospital.
Dr Singh added, “The children with age group of 8-12 years are facing anxiety and anger issues along with the OCD, we have seen around 8 such cases in last 2-3 months, which very higher as compared to pre-COVID times. Lockdown has surely made a person with anxious personality and temperament more vulnerable to OCD.”
According to the survey conducted by the Indian Psychiatry Society, the number of reported cases of mental illness had risen by 20% in just one week of the lockdown announcement.
While high income countries have a healthy average of 6 psychiatrists per 100,000 population, in India there is not even 1 psychiatrist available per 100,000 population.
Mental health experts have for long underlined the need to increase policy thrust on mental health and awareness. Mental health helplines have reported a significant rise in queries. In general, roughly 41.9% women suffer from neuro-psychiatric disorders as compared to 29.3% for men in the world (WHO Action Plan 2013-2020).
Dr Gurpreet Sandhu, president, Council for Healthcare & Pharma, A health advocacy and global think tank said, “Spurred by COVID, the recent shift to telemedicine and therefore the rise in accessing mental health and counselling services online and remotely will prove to be helpful in meeting this growing challenge. Telepsychiatry not only assures privacy and anonymity but is also expected to bring down costs for patients. Given the overwhelming concentration of mental health specialists in big cities and urban areas, telepsychiatry can also go a long way in addressing the needs of mental health patients in smaller towns and the countryside. The priority should be to make people aware of these services. At the same time, it is imperative to develop standardised assessment tools and methods accounting for the socio-economic, cultural and demographic specificities of rural areas and the hinterland.”
According to a comprehensive study published in the Lancet Psychiatry, India had 46 million depression patients and another 45 million suffering anxiety disorders.
A few recent studies have indicated a clear increase in instances of self-harm and suicidal tendencies among people post the coronavirus pandemic.
Amritah Sandhu, founder & director of careindia, a wellness pharmacy working for women health in rural areas said, “With the pandemic leading to major uncertainty and insecurity, the question has once again raised on India’s chronically low expenditure on mental health. This is turning out to be a major bane as the country witnessed a major surge in mental illnesses in a post-COVID-19 world. The worst hits are women. A survey carried out by the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), found women who are currently in work are substantially more anxious about their economic prospects in the wake of the pandemic than men. Most women feel that the money concern prompted during the pandemic is directly affecting their mental health”.
