Research suggests pandemic is hurting kids’ mental health
Children whose lives were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic are beginning to feel a strain on their mental health, new research suggests.
In a study published recently in JAMA Network Open, 1,784 children in second through sixth grades in Hubei province, where the coronavirus emerged, were surveyed to assess their mental health due to coronavirus shutdowns. The study found approximately one in five — 20% — reported symptoms of depression after their schools had been closed for a month. Results were similar for anxiety symptoms, suggesting that serious infectious diseases may influence the mental health of children.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, between 2% and 3% of children aged 6 to 12 suffered from depression before the pandemic.
Hope Nichols, a family therapist who practices in Philadelphia, said she wasn’t surprised by the increasing numbers of children showing symptoms of depression or anxiety.
“This is a disruption,” Nichols said. “It’s a big change in the system. And lots of people — young people, old people — can be triggered with anxiety or depression due to a sudden change.”
Researchers have cautioned that parents and school officials should expect to see worsened mental health in children — and adults — from the pandemic due to a combination of social isolation, economic recession and a public health crisis.
School closures, in particular, meant that some students lost access to mental health services. An analysis of data from the 20122015 National Survey on Drug
Use and Health found that slightly more than a third of adolescents who accessed mental health services only did so in educational settings.
That’s why it’s important for parents to make kids feel like they can talk about their emotions safely at home, said Michael Consuelos, senior medical adviser for NeuroFlow, a behavioral health platform.
“This is not an individual trauma; it’s a community one,” he said. “Kids feel that too. It’s likely that there will be some posttraumatic effects because it is a prolonged disruption in their daily lives, and there is no end date on this. It’s important for parents to be open to their kids’ feelings without judgment, and when it’s over, to continuously be there.”
Nina Cummings, a psychologist based in Narberth, Pennsylvania, who specializes in adolescents and young adults, said when a child is struggling emotionally, they may behave differently.
Children might be angry one minute, clingy the next, or more prone to crying. Their sleep and appetites might be affected as well, and they may have difficulty concentrating when doing schoolwork.
Parents need to find a way to navigate those painful feelings together with their child. Explaining to them that they have the right to be upset, but that it’s unproductive to make those around them miserable, could start conversations about the emotions COVID-19 is triggering, Cummings said.
Consuelos said asking how a child is feeling and listening to them can be crucial to identifying any depression or anxiety symptoms. He also said that making sure kids have routines in their life can help lend some structure in a time filled with uncertainty.
“There’s a huge sense of grief right now,” Consuelos said. “Kids may be reflecting some of the stress from their parents.
“If they’re more irritable, it’s possible that their parents are also more irritable. And kids are hearing death and illness being talked about in a way that isn’t normal in conversations, on the news.”