How COVID disturbs mental health: Key symptoms to note

While we have vaccines and medicines to counter the 'physical' effect of COVID, much less is being done to tackle the menace the virus has created on mental health.

COVID affects the neurological well being of a person. It affects the cognitive ability and a person's basic function like memory, concentration.

A global pandemic, no clue on how it functions, less awareness on the course of action of the disease causing virus and mass lockdown triggered anxiety and depression in many.

On the effect of COVID on the mental health of an individual, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had said: Added to the fear of contracting the virus in a pandemic such as COVID-19 are the significant changes to our daily lives as our movements are restricted in support of efforts to contain and slow down the spread of the virus. Faced with new realities of working from home, temporary unemployment, home-schooling of children, and lack of physical contact with other family members, friends and colleagues, it is important that we look after our mental, as well as our physical, health.

A news release by the WHO in March 2022, just when the Omicron led third COVID wave was in its initial stage, said that in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a massive 25%.

One of the major reasons, the WHO report says, is due to the social isolation caused during lockdowns.

"Loneliness, fear of infection, suffering and death for oneself and for loved ones, grief after bereavement and financial worries have also all been cited as stressors leading to anxiety and depression," the report said.

It also talked about the depression in health care workers caused due to exhaustion.

Unfortunately, many people are unable to understand the cause of the mental confusion they go through post a COVID infection. Lack of awareness around mental health and its connection with COVID keeps many people out of reach of medical assistance.

Here are the symptoms commonly seen in people who develop mental health complications following a COVID infection:

Depression

Anxiety

Insomnia

Increased substance use

Extreme mood change

Low energy

Withdrawal from social interaction

Change in appetite

Change in sex drive

Suicidal thoughts

Onset of hostility, violence and anger

Hallucinations

Studies have said that though pandemic has affected all, there are certain groups which are extremely vulnerable to the impact COVID has on mental health.

As per a study report published in The New England Journal of Medicine, "people who contract the disease, those at heightened risk for it (including the elderly, people with compromised immune function, and those living or receiving care in congregate settings), and people with preexisting medical, psychiatric, or substance use problems are at increased risk for adverse psychosocial outcomes."

The study has also emphasized on how healthcare workers have an increased risk. It says, these people are most affected due to "emotional distress in the current pandemic, given their risk of exposure to the virus, concern about infecting and caring for their loved ones, shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE), longer work hours, and involvement in emotionally and ethically fraught resource-allocation decisions''.

COVID has taken a toll on everyone's health alike. According to a report by UNICEF "a median of 1 in 5 young people aged 15–24 surveyed said they often feel depressed or have little interest in doing things." The report done jointly by UNICEF and Gallup surveyed children and adults in 21 countries.

The report said that globally, 1 in 7 kids have been directly affected by lockdowns.

More than 1.6 billion children worldwide suffered from loss of education.

A cohort study published in February 2022 in the BMJ found that people with COVID showed an increased risk of mental health disorders beyond the first 30 days of developing the infection.

"The risks were evident even among those who were not admitted to hospital during the acute phase of covid-19—this group represents most people with covid-19; the risks were highest in those who were admitted to hospital during the acute phase of the disease," it found.

The common symptoms it found in patients were: anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, stress and adjustment disorders, opioid use disorder, other (non-opioid) substance use disorders, neurocognitive decline, and sleep disorders.

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