COVID-19, Mental Health, and Looking Toward Resilience

Research in medicine and psychology is only beginning to understand the mental health impacts of COVID-19. Initial findings indicate that whether people are diagnosed with COVID-19 or working hard to avoid it, we are all experiencing varying degrees of change in our thinking, feeling, and behavior. The impact of COVID-19 is widely varied, with many factors contributing to each individual’s experience (Mancini, 2020). The burden of COVID-19 is not equally shared, echoing the inequality of our society at large, with those most vulnerable carrying the greatest weight.

Fitzpatrick and colleagues (2020) found that of a large nationally representative sample (n = 10368), nearly 20% were unemployed or furloughed, depressive symptoms were high, and more than 25% of the sample reported moderate to high anxiety. Some folks were more vulnerable to the impact of fear, depression, and anxiety related to COVID-19 – in particular women, those who identify as Asian or Hispanic, people who are born outside the US and now reside here, and families with children. As people are exposed to more risk factors – such as work stress, childcare needs, social isolation, interpersonal loss, and virus exposure – so too does the mental health toll increase (Mancini, 2020).

From years of studying the impact of mass trauma on communities, we know that maintaining connection and social relationships is a huge protective factor in times of stress (Taylor, 2006). Although over half the world’s population is in lockdown (Sandford, 2020), many have adapted to finding social support through remote resources, including texting, social media, and video conferencing (Richter, 2020).

Feeling connected during COVID-19 is undoubtedly hard and has forced changes in our habits in connecting with community. Some are doing video chats, watching movies remotely and synchronously, or doing porch drop offs of baked goods and take out for local family and friends.

How are you keeping in touch with family and friends during COVID-19? Let’s talk about it.

Warmly,

Dr. Ruth

Fitzpatrick, K. M., Harris, C., & Drawve, G. (2020). Fear of COVID-19 and the mental health consequences in America. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(S1), S17-S21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/tra0000924

Mancini, A. D. (2020). Heterogeneous mental health consequences of COVID-19: Costs and benefits. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(S1), S15-S16. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/tra0000894

Richter, F. (2020). The video apps we’re downloading amid the coronavirus pandemic. Retrieved fromhttps://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/infographic-apps-pandemic-technology-data-coronavirus-covid19-tech/

Sandford, A. (2020). Coronavirus: Half of humanity now on lockdown as 90 countries call for confinement. Euronews. Retrieved fromhttps://www.euronews.com/2020/04/02/coronavirus-in-europe-spain-s-death-toll-hits-10-000-after-record-950-new-deaths-in-24-hours

Taylor, S. E. (2006). Tend and befriend biobehavioral bases of affiliation under stress. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 15, 273–277. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2006.00451.x