As pandemic ends, its impact on mental health lingers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ended last week, but rates of anxiety, depression and substance use disorders have increased since the start of the pandemic three years ago and the impacts are lingering.

In the United States, mental health conditions are affecting as many as 1 in 5, or around 47 million, people.

“The effects of the pandemic on our mental health may be far longer lasting than the disease itself,” said Dr. Mike Hansen. “COVID has also caused disruptions to our mental health in an indirect manner. It’s affected our physical activity levels, our eating behaviors, our sleep patterns and our relationship with addictive substances, including social media.”

There’s been an uptick in mental health disorders since the start of the pandemic.

According to the National Institute of Health, nearly half of Americans surveyed reported symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder.

“What we really have to be careful of when we talk about mental health during this time is what’s an actual anxiety or depressive disorder and what is just a stress response that makes sense, given how uncertain the world feels,” said Dr. Sarah Vinson, a psychiatrist.

NIH research shows that, if you get COVID, you may experience several symptoms related to brain and mental health, including brain fog, anxiety and depression.

It is important, however, to recognize the difference between typical stress and a disorder.

“If there is actually impairment,” Vinson said. “Is this getting in your way? Is this making it difficult or impossible even for you to do your work, fulfill your responsibilities in your household, sleep at night? When that continues for weeks at a time, that’s when you should think this is more than a stress response.”

COVID can affect the mental health of anyone, but some people are more likely to experience mental illness symptoms than others. That includes people from racial and ethnic minority groups, mothers and pregnant people, people with financial or housing insecurity, and children.

Unfortunately, as the need for care has increased, long waits are standard fare for therapists.

It’s also important to that data shows people are more likely to develop mental illnesses or disorders several months after testing positive for coronavirus.

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