It has now been a year since the day the state of alarm was announced in March 2020 and the world went inside their homes. From then until now, the coronavirus has been leaving after-effects, both to those who have been directly affected by the disease or by its consequences.
The latest studies show that 1 in 4 Spaniards has anxious or depressive symptoms, or both. This is mainly due to the numerous sacrifices we have had to make to adapt to the new situation, in a period of time that is taking too long.
Psychologists call it “Loss of Reinforcers”, the main one being the forced social isolation, so important for emotional well-being. On the other hand, the economic and labor uncertainty that many people have suffered is having devastating effects on mental health: cases of problems derived from high levels of worry, living with uncertainty, anxious symptoms, sleep problems, irritability, among others, have increased.
What symptoms can we detect?
The main symptoms that the population is accusing in recent times due to the pandemic are:
- An increase in cases of depression and anxiety mainly.
- Problems falling asleep or poor sleep.
- Isolated symptoms of low mood such as: sadness, listlessness, apathy.
- Increase of obsessive symptomatology, especially there has been an increase in cases of hypochondriasis disorder, the fear of being sick.
- Increased consumption of alcohol and also of anxiolytics and antidepressants.
- Increase of negative thoughts related to fears. In general, fear of losing something valuable in our life.
- The urge to cry for no apparent reason.
When should we see a specialist?
If we notice that the weeks go by and we do not improve, or even get worse, or if each time new symptoms are added to the previous ones, affecting the functioning of the main areas of our life such as work or family.
Psychological therapy helps us to work on ourselves in order to increase the perception of well-being in our life.
What are the consequences for children?
Fortunately, children have hardly suffered from the physical effects of the virus on their physical health, however, they are suffering a great deal on a psychological level.
This population has had to adapt quickly to the format of online classes with the limitations derived from this method. Children with low resources have not been able to access all the classes.
As for the consequences of this situation for them, there have been more cases of irritability, anxiety and sadness as their social interactions have been reduced to a minimum, which are important for everyone, but for this population they are of vital importance.
An increase in disorders related to fear, anxiety and depression is expected, especially for those who, due to their personal circumstances, have had to make more sacrifices.
Has the pandemic had any positive effect on people?
As always, something good can come out of bad situations, and the effects of Covid-19 are no less positive.
- There is a greater appreciation and appreciation for the good things we have, and feelings of gratitude for them have increased.
- We have realized how important human relationships are for people, making use of them in the ways that the pandemic has allowed us to do so.
- We give more importance to health and we have made changes in the way we eat and we have increased the importance of sports in our routine.