More people struggle with anxiety
Covid-19 and uncertainty creating problems for many
The dedicated week is an opportunity for us all to explore the experiences, actions, relationships, and surroundings that make us feel good and uplift our wellbeing.
“We still need to focus on good mental health in our community,” says Meg Sillay, chairwoman of Samaritans Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne, BOP and Waikato. “Almost all the calls to our free telephone support line currently are related to loneliness, anxiety, and family issues.”
The Samaritans’ free telephone support line saw an almost 25 per cent spike in calls during the first week of New Zealand’s unprecedented national lockdown in March and April, with increased anxiety being felt among many callers.
“Many calls were also about loneliness or family issues,” Meg says.
New Zealand’s Samaritans said they saw a 23 per cent rise in calls during the first week of the lockdown. Many callers were concerned about elderly relatives, who do not have friends or family close by, and how they would be coping without assistance.
Greg Halse, office manager for The Samaritans regional office, said, “People with mental health issues are struggling more now, due to the increase in negative news media and general uncertainty in the world. Those on their own feel extremely vulnerable.”
The most common problem overall, is increased anxiety.
The New Economics Foundation (NEF) conducted a review of the most up-to-date evidence and found that building five actions into our day to day lives is important for the wellbeing of individuals, families, communities, and organisations. The five actions are:
1. Connect, me whakawhanaunga. Talk and listen. Be there. Feel connected.
Feeling close to other people and valued by them is a fundamental human need. Across all ages, relationships and participation in a social life are critical for mental wellbeing and effective buffers against mental disorder. Strong social relationships are supportive, encouraging, and meaningful, and a wider social network is also important for feelings of connectedness and self-worth. The key message of Connect is that giving time and space to both strengthen and broaden social networks is important for wellbeing.
2. Give, tukua Your time. Your words. Your presence. Giving is more than just the sharing of material things with others. It is about cultivating a spirit of generosity and promoting active participation in social and community life. Volunteering and community involvement is strongly linked with positive feelings and functioning. Helping others, sharing one’s skills and resources, and behaviours that promote a sense of purpose and team orientation have been found to help increase self-worth and produce a positive emotional effect. Giving is important for all age groups. It helps develop strong social cognition in children, a sense of purpose and selfworth in adults and particularly older people who have left the workforce and have time to offer.
3. Take notice, me aro tonu Appreciate the little things. Savour the moment. Developing skills that increase awareness of what is immediately happening — both physically and mentally, within and around us — can improve wellbeing. Even short courses teaching simple techniques can enhance wellbeing for several years. Much research has been done on mindfulness, which has been shown to have positive effects that include heightened selfknowledge. It suggests that an open awareness is particularly valuable for choosing behaviours that are consistent with one’s needs, values, and interests.
4. Keep learning, me ako tonu Embrace new experiences. See opportunities. Surprise yourself. Learning, remaining curious and setting goals is important for all ages. For children, it leads to positive cognitive and social development, while for adults it can lead to improvements in self-esteem, social interaction and a more active and involved life. Adult learning includes elements of goal setting, which is strongly associated with higher levels of wellbeing. This is particularly true when goals are self-generated, positively focused and align with personal values.
5. Be active, me kori tonu Do what you can. Enjoy what you do. Move your mood. Research shows a strong correlation between physical activity and increased wellbeing, as well as lower rates of depression and anxiety. It is now viewed as essential for people of all ages and has been shown to slow age-related cognitive decline. Evidence suggests that physical activity can increase selfbelief, the ability to cope with difficult situations and provide a sense of mastery. It can also have the benefit of encouraging social interactions. Physical activity does not need to be particularly energetic to be of benefit. Moderate exertion three to five times a week can significantly reduce symptoms of depression, but improvements can also be seen from single bouts of exercise of less than 10 minutes.
You can introduce any of these actions into your life, any time, and you will begin to feel the benefits.
As well as these five self-help actions, you can also call The Samaritans who provide a free confidential non-judgmental listening and support service, operating 24 hours a day. Call on 0800 72 66 66.