The pandemic might be over for most of the world, but its impact on people’s mental health is still going strong: The first year of the covid-19 pandemic drove up global despair and anxiety by 25%, with one in every eight people facing some form of mental illness, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The briefing from the organization also found that women and children were the most susceptible to mental health issues caused by the pandemic and appeared to develop these issues at a faster pace than men. People with chronic illnesses, including asthma, cancer, and heart diseases also had higher incidence rates. Similarly, The OECD reported that by early 2020, mental health issues increased sharply, with a 50% increase in anxiety and depression tracked in countries like Belgium, France, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, the UK and the US than before Covid 19 hit.

Mental disorders were also on the rise in Egypt as a result of the pandemic: A study published in August 2020 found that 41% of the sample size of Egyptian adults reported a “severe” psychological impact from the pandemic, with more than a third reporting an uptick in work-related stress, more than half reporting increasing financial stress, and nearly two-thirds saying stress from home also increased because of covid-19. Around half of those surveyed “felt horrified and helpless,” the study said.

Unsurprisingly, mental health and physical health are a two-way circuit: Mental health issues also had an impact on individuals’ physical health and their ability to recover from the disease, according to the WHO. Individuals who had preexisting mental health concerns were shown to be the most likely to suffer from severe illness or death as a result of covid-19.

So what’s been causing the spike in mental health issues? Stress is a major culprit: Depression and anxiety rates have increased significantly since 2020 due to the increasing prevalence of stress-inducing life conditions, including social isolation, unemployment, loss of loved ones, and financial instability, among others, according to the OECD. “High risk calls have now become a daily occurrence, ranging from child or adult safeguarding concerns to someone who might have taken a significant amount of pills, or they might be standing on a bridge,” CEO of British mental health provider Health Assured Bertrand Stern-Gillet told the Financial Times.

This surge in mental health conditions prompted a widespread government response: “Concerns about potential increases in mental health conditions had already prompted 90% of countries surveyed to include mental health and psychosocial support in their COVID-19 response plans,” according to the WHO.

But the growing demand for mental health support also led to shortages on the service supply side: “For much of the pandemic, services for mental, neurological and substance use conditions were the most disrupted among all essential health services,” the WHO said. However, by the end of 2021, it seems that many people who need care have also turned to online support, but digital resources remain scarce in developing countries. This gap has led global organizations such as the WHO and OECD to develop levitra generique and mental health support plans, with the WHO publishing awareness material geared towards different age groups and updating the Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030 with support indicators for mental illness. OECD countries have developed support lines, improved access to mental health services, and promoted programs in schools and workplaces to raise awareness about mental health issues and how to handle them.

What better time to promote mental health than when the entire world is watching the same global event? The WHO is capitalizing on the World Cup in Qatar to promote mental health awareness and wellbeing, with a new initiative to set up “Friendship Benches” across key locations in Doha, according to a UN statement. The idea behind this project was to shed light on the significance of mental health and well-being, and according to WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, “The bench is a simple yet powerful vehicle for promoting mental health, from park benches where people gather to football stadiums where players and staff watch their teams play for the joy and promise of sports and success.”