Mental health and COVID
It has been a year since COVID-19 changed our lives in ways none of us imagined. The shortterm impact on mental health has been devastating for some and we don’t know what this will mean long term.
Concern about social isolation among older adults didn’t start with COVID-19. There were already a multitude of studies about the harmful physical and mental health impacts of isolation and loneliness, believed to be more harmful than smoking and obesity as risk factors for early death.
Yet, loneliness and isolation are not solely concerns for the very old. People 50plus reported often feeling isolated or lonely well before COVID-19. During the pandemic those who are unused to social isolation are having a more difficult time, regardless of their age.
Something that was once talked about mostly by senior service professionals is now a concern of schools, families and even 30-somethings. As weeks in lockdown turned into months of reduced in-person interactions with loved ones and becomes a year of constant disruption, people of all ages are struggling with the mental health impacts of COVID-19.
The harmful effects of the pandemic will likely continue long after things go back to “normal.” People will need to relearn how to come together in larger groups. Some will exhibit new or increased stress, fear and anxiety associated with being in groups. People will continue to grieve the loss of loved ones. Yet, there have been unexpected (to researchers) discoveries.
At least one study during the pandemic found that many older people are coping better than people expected. Mark Brennan-Ing, a senior research scientist at Hunter College’s Brookdale Center for Health Aging, called it “crisis competence.” He explained that as we get older, we have the sense that we can handle things “because we’ve been able to handle challenges in the past … these things happen, but there’s an end to it and there’s life after that.” Many older people have resilience born of a long-term view and experience getting through tough times.
Teenagers and young adults don’t yet have the world view and resilience that extended time on the planet provides. I have seen this with my nieces and nephew, all in their 20s and just beginning to make their way in life. Their normal worlds have been reduced to a greater proportional degree than that of the average adult.
Rates of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among youth were higher in some months in 2020 compared to 2019, according to a study of 11to 21-year-olds in a major metropolitan area of Texas. Months with significantly higher rates of suicide-related behaviors appear to correspond to times when COVID-19—related stressors and community responses were heightened, indicating that youth experienced elevated distress during these periods. (Hill RM, et al. Pediatrics. February 2021).
Think back to when you were a teenager or in your 20s. How would this pandemic have changed your life? How would you have thought about your future? How would you have felt about giving up some of the milestones and events that occur during that time? Older adults who were teenagers or in their twenties during the Depression or World War II know about loss and lean times, but usually one’s teens and 20s is a time of excitement, fun, friends and seeing your future before you.
Many older adults are staying safely at home, full of resilience and knowledge. Also at home are students and young adults who would benefit from lessons in resilience, someone to talk to, or even tutoring help. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child. Elders are part of that village and increasingly available via Zoom. Take the time to check in on a young adult in your life. You could be saving theirs.