World Mental Health Day
Written by Gavin Cheema, Head of Clinical Services and Service Development
Impact of Lockdown
Earlier this year, billions of people went into lockdown all around the world and research conducted by Mind found that “more than half of adults (60%) and over two thirds of young people (68%) said their mental health got worse during lockdown”.
Lockdown and the uncertainty this has brought, has undoubtedly, affected everyone in different ways and to differing extents. The figures reflect a stark impact lockdown has had on our mental health and is one of the reasons why this World Mental Health Day on October 10th could be the most important one to date.
The World Federation for Mental Health theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day is ‘Mental Health for All: Greater Investment – Greater Access’ . Access to mental health services should be available for everyone, everywhere and is all the more reason for a greater investment in mental health programmes and support over the coming months and years.
As well as the noticeable impact lockdown has had on peoples existing mental health problems, it is clear that many have developed new mental health problems. Whilst attitudes to mental health have improved over the years, stigma still exists, and this can create a barrier for many people in seeking help, support and having conversations about their mental health. Reflecting back over the past few months, COVID-19 has brought an improved atmosphere of acceptance, conversation and awareness on mental health and is one lasting impact of this pandemic we hope will continue in the post-pandemic era.
https://www.mind.org.uk/get-involved/world-mental-health-day-2020/
https://wfmh.global/wp-content/uploads/WMHD2020_v16_resized.pdf