Bangkok Post

Teens face pandemic woes

- POST REPORTERS

Thailand Policy Lab says many Thai teens have expressed their worries on social media through more than 100,000 messages, signalling a possible mental health problem among youths.

The organisati­on, establishe­d by Thailand’s Office of the National Economic and Social Developmen­t Council and United Nations Developmen­t Programme (UNDP), held a seminar on Thursday highlighti­ng issues of mental health among Thai teens.

Data collected showed the messages, posted amid the coronaviru­s pandemic, gained more than 10 million engagement­s, including public shares, likes and comments.

After analysing the messages, Pongpanott Deekong, Policy and Social Innovation Specialist for Thailand Policy Lab, said “stressed” was the most posted keyword under its mental issue aspect, while “lonely” was found in more than 42,000 messages under the social aspect.

The keyword “insomnia” was found 2,700 times under Thailand Policy Lab’s physical aspect, while “clueless” was expressed under the education aspect, he said.

Other keywords indicate that some students were anxious, worried, burnt out and had suicidal thoughts, he said, adding the cause of these concerns came from online learning.

Jos Vandelaer, World Health Organizati­on Representa­tive to Thailand, said the pandemic has exacerbate­d mental health problems among students. One in seven Thai teens suffers from mental illness which has symptoms such as insomnia and loneliness, triggering suicidal thoughts, he said. He said young women are more likely to develop mental illness.

Thailand Policy Lab said the data it has collected will lead to policy developmen­t to aid Thai youths who suffer from mental health issues.

Mental health problems can occur during adolescenc­e and will have consequenc­es lasting until adulthood, Dr Vandelaer said, adding that it is important to promote mental wellbeing as much as possible.

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