"VAN" (Europe Bureau - Aleksey Vesyoliy) :: The pandemic has turned the lives of millions of people including young people upside down. Many young people are finding it hard to cope with a loss of routine, anxiety about the future, a disruption to their education, and in some cases difficult or traumatic experiences at home. The COVID-19 global pandemic is going to be a marathon and the restrictive measures that many countries are taking to contain the outbreak can have a negative impact on young people's mental health and well-being.
YOUTH ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION ON THE RISE.
WE ARE EXPERIENCING THE WORLD’S BIGGEST PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT.
Author of picture: Rihards (young person with special needs) from Latvia. Drawing is his therapy fighting depression and anxiety during global pandemic.
People with no history of mental illness are developing serious psychological problems for the first time as a result of the lockdown, amid growing stresses over isolation. The COVID-19 pandemic may be especially challenging for those who already have mental health problems. Their human rights, safety, protection, and even the environment, are at risk.
Despite huge efforts from mental health professionals, young people with existing mental health needs often can’t get the same level of support as they had before the crisis. Recent survey conducted across the United Kingdom reveals that 1 in 4 children and young people with mental health problems has stopped receiving help as a result of the disruption caused by the coronavirus. Many parents and careers are deeply worried about the long-term impact of the pandemic on the young people in their care, and don’t know where to turn for advice and support.
Psychiatrists in the United Kingdom and many other countries are concerned about stress linked to the fear of contracting Covid-19 are also exacerbating existing mental health problems. Some of them now refer to the emergence of “lockdown anxiety”. Mental health specialists observe growing number of patients with a set of symptoms they had christened “corona-psychosis”. Such patients have typically lost their job and are having trouble sleeping, becoming anxious from watching the news on TV and no longer getting social support through their normal networks. Psychiatrists observe that “lockdown has exacerbated behavioural difficulties in children” as well that there are more “patients having severe psychotic symptoms which incorporate Covid-related themes”.
Levels of anxiety and depression were found to play a significant part in how far young people adhere to the physical distancing guidelines. Those who were more anxious were more likely to comply, whereas those with higher levels of depression were more likely to break the rules. For example, recent study in the United Kingdom shows that more than half of young men aged 19-24 have breached the United Kingdom's lockdown rules by meeting with a group of friends. This group was also more likely to think they were not at risk of catching COVID-19 or spreading it to others, and that following the government's guidelines was not worthwhile. The findings suggest ministers need to explain the reasons for ongoing physical distancing rules as they begin to lift some lockdown measures. Researchers from the University of Sheffield and Ulster University found 1 in 5 men aged 19-21 have been dispersed, arrested, fined or taken home by police for breaking the rules, compared with just one in 10 women of the same age.
A study carried out with young people with a history of mental health needs living in the United Kingdom reports that 32% of them agreed that the pandemic had made their mental health much worse. An increase in alcohol consumption is another area of concern for mental health experts. Statistics from Canada report that 20% of 15-49 year-olds have increased their alcohol consumption during the pandemic.
European adolescents are reporting poor mental health
More than 227 000 schoolchildren aged 11, 13 and 15 from 44 countries across Europe took part in the international Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study and the results were published by the World Health Organisation's European office and available online. The report compiles extensive data on the physical health, social relationships and mental well-being and provides a baseline against which future studies can measure the impact of COVID-19 on young people’s lives.
Study found that adolescent mental well-being declined in many countries across Europe between 2014 and 2018, warning that how authorities respond to this growing problem will "echo for generations". Study shows that mental well-being declines as children grow older, with girls particularly at risk of having poor mental well-being outcomes compared to boys.
Social and emotional well-being decreases as adolescents get older, especially among girls.
Interesting findings from international Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study.
Eating behaviours and oral health
• Most adolescents are failing to meet current nutritional recommendations, undermining their capacity for healthy development. The proportion of adolescents eating breakfast has declined since 2014 in around half the countries.
• More than 4 out of 10 adolescents do not eat breakfast every school day. Girls across all ages tend to skip breakfast and eat fewer meals with their family than boys.
• Almost 2 in 3 adolescents do not eat enough nutrient-rich foods such as fruits and vegetables, and consumption of highly processed foods is high: one in four adolescents eat sweets and one in six consume sugary drinks at least once a day. This is despite declines in sweets and soft-drinks consumption and an increase in fruit and vegetable intake since 2014.
• Levels of good oral hygiene, as indicated by regular tooth brushing, remain low in some countries, especially among boys. Social inequalities in eating behaviours and oral health persist in most countries/regions, with adolescents from richer families having healthier eating habits and better oral hygiene.
Physical activity
• Fewer than 1 in 5 adolescents meet the World Health Organisation global physical activity recommendations of 60 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each day. Levels have declined in around a third of countries/regions since 2014, mostly among boys, and participation remains particularly low among girls and older adolescents.
• More adolescents (half of boys and a third of girls) participate in vigorous physical activity four or more times a week. Social inequalities in physical activity persist, with adolescents from poorer families reporting lower levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and vigorous physical activity in most countries.
Online communication
• While use of digital technology is now ubiquitous among young people, girls are more likely than boys to communicate frequently with friends and others online and are more at risk of problematic social media use. Around a third of adolescents communicate online with friends and others almost all the time throughout the day, and intensive use increases with age.
• Overall, 1 in 7 adolescents prefer to use online communication to discuss personal issues with their friends, and this is more common among boys. Problematic social media use affects 7% of adolescents overall but is highest among older girls.
Bullying and violence
• Boys are more likely to be perpetrators of both physical and online violence, while girls are more likely to be victims of cyberbullying.
• Boys report higher involvement in physical fights, bullying and cyberbullying perpetration. Unlike face-to-face bullying, where the rates are similar among genders, girls are more likely to be cyberbullied, especially at age 13.
• Despite declines in bullying perpetration since 2014, the proportion of adolescents being bullied has remained the same.
• Younger adolescents are particularly vulnerable and more likely to be the victims of bullying. There is no clear link between social inequalities and violent behaviours.
Social well-being
• Most adolescents report high family and peer support, but social inequalities exist in more than half of countries taking part in the study.
• 2 in 3 adolescents perceive their parents as being highly supportive and easy to talk to, but both these positive aspects of family life decline with increasing age. Boys report higher levels of parental support and communication, while girls perceive higher levels of support from their friends. While ease of communication with parents has improved since 2014, levels of peer support have declined.
• Social well-being is socially patterned, with adolescents from richer families reporting better communication with their parents and higher levels of family and peer support.
School experience
• Compared with 2014, adolescents in around a third of countries/regions are more likely to feel pressured by schoolwork and less likely to like school.
• School experience worsens with age: school satisfaction and support from teachers and classmates decline, and schoolwork pressure increases. Gender differences in schoolwork pressure increase with age, with 15-year-old girls reporting higher levels than boys in most countries.
• Adolescents from richer families report more schoolwork pressure.
These results also show socioeconomic differences in health and in the quality of social networks that support health. Adolescents from more affluent families, for instance, benefit from more supportive social relationships at school and home, are more physically active, have better diets and report greater life satisfaction and better health. More affluent adolescents are also more likely to have breakfast and family meals and eat fruit and vegetables each day, and are less likely to be overweight or obese. Exceptions to this socioeconomic pattern are found in reports of school pressure and medically attended injuries, which are higher in more affluent adolescents.
Recognition is growing that investing in adolescence yields triple benefits, bringing health, social and economic gains to today’s adolescents, tomorrow’s adults and future generations.
The distinction between health promotion and prevention lies in their targeted outcomes. Mental health promotion aims to promote positive mental health by increasing psychological well-being, competence and resilience, and by creating supporting living conditions and environments. Mental disorder prevention has as its target the reduction of symptoms and ultimately of mental disorders. It uses mental health promotion strategies as one of the means to achieve these goals. Mental health promotion when aiming to enhance positive mental health in the community may also have the secondary outcome of decreasing the incidence of mental disorders. Positive mental health serves as a powerful protective factor against mental illness. However, mental disorders and positive mental health cannot be described as the different ends of a linear scale, but rather as two overlapping and interrelated components of a single concept of mental health.
Addressing mental health as everyday issues will contribute to achieving broader goals such as increasing employability, improving physical health, helping people to do better in school and work, and reducing crime and community and overcoming personal insecurities, isolation and marginalization. It is a journey that won’t be easy.
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Sintija Bernava
Chairwoman of the Board, Non Governmental Organisation "Donum Animus"
Program Director "Creative Workshops" implemented by volunteers at the Children’s Central University Hospital of Latvia
"Donum Animus" is the only Non Governmental Organisation from Latvia holding Special Consultative Status of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations
Please read full article with pictures at EUNetwork.lv!
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