Anxiety is increasing

COVID-19 pandemic triggers 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide

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COVID-19 pandemic triggers 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide

Getty Images/Justin Paget

In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a massive 25%, according to a scientific brief released by the World Health Organization (WHO) today. The brief also highlights who has been most affected and summarizes the effect of the pandemic on the availability of mental health services and how this has changed during the pandemic.

Concerns about potential increases in mental health conditions had already prompted 90% of countries surveyed to include mental health and psychosocial support in their COVID-19 response plans, but major gaps and concerns remain.

“The information we have now about the impact of COVID-19 on the world’s mental health is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “This is a wake-up call to all countries to pay more attention to mental health and do a better job of supporting their populations’ mental health.”

Multiple stress factors

One major explanation for the increase is the unprecedented stress caused by the social isolation resulting from the pandemic. Linked to this were constraints on people’s ability to work, seek support from loved ones and engage in their communities.

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. Among health workers, exhaustion has been a major trigger for suicidal thinking.

Young people and women worst hit

The brief, which is informed by a comprehensive review of existing evidence about the impact of COVID-19 on mental health and mental health services, and includes estimates from the latest Global Burden of Disease study, shows that the pandemic has affected the mental health of young people and that they are disproportionally at risk of suicidal and self-harming behaviours. It also indicates that women have been more severely impacted than men and that people with pre-existing physical health conditions, such as asthma, cancer and heart disease, were more likely to develop symptoms of mental disorders.

Data suggests that people with pre-existing mental disorders do not appear to be disproportionately vulnerable to COVID-19 infection. Yet, when these people do become infected, they are more likely to suffer hospitalization, severe illness and death compared with people without mental disorders. People with more severe mental disorders, such as psychoses, and young people with mental disorders, are particularly at risk.

Gaps in care

This increase in the prevalence of mental health problems has coincided with severe disruptions to mental health services, leaving huge gaps in care for those who need it most. For much of the pandemic, services for mental, neurological and substance use conditions were the most disrupted among all essential health services reported by WHO Member States. Many countries also reported major disruptions in life-saving services for mental health, including for suicide prevention.

By the end of 2021 the situation had somewhat improved but today too many people remain unable to get the care and support they need for both pre-existing and newly developed mental health conditions.

Unable to access face-to-face care, many people have sought support online, signaling an urgent need to make reliable and effective digital tools available and easily accessible. However, developing and deploying digital interventions remains a major challenge in resource-limited countries and settings.

WHO and country action

Since the early days of the pandemic, WHO and partners have worked to develop and disseminate resources in multiple languages and formats to help different groups cope with and respond to the mental health impacts of COVID-19. For example, WHO produced a story book for 6-11-year-olds, My Hero is You, now available in 142 languages and 61 multimedia adaptations, as well as a toolkit for supporting older adults available in 16 languages.

At the same time, the Organization has worked with partners, including other United Nations agencies, international nongovernmental organizations and the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, to lead an interagency mental health and psychosocial response to COVID-19. Throughout the pandemic, WHO has also worked to promote the integration of mental health and psychosocial support across and within all aspects of the global response.

WHO Member States have recognized the impact of COVID-19 on mental health and are taking action. WHO’s most recent pulse survey on continuity of essential health services indicated that 90% of countries are working to provide mental health and psychosocial support to COVID-19 patients and responders alike. Moreover, at last year’s World Health Assembly, countries emphasized the need to develop and strengthen mental health and psychosocial support services as part of strengthening preparedness, response and resilience to COVID-19 and future public health emergencies. They adopted the updated Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030, which includes an indicator on preparedness for mental health and psychosocial support in public health emergencies.

Step up investment

However, this commitment to mental health needs to be accompanied by a global step up in investment. Unfortunately, the situation underscores a chronic global shortage of mental health resources that continues today. WHO’s most recent Mental Health Atlas showed that in 2020, governments worldwide spent on average just over 2% of their health budgets on mental health and many low-income countries reported having fewer than 1 mental health worker per 100 000 people.

Dévora Kestel, Director of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Use at WHO, sums up the situation: ”While the pandemic has generated interest in and concern for mental health, it has also revealed historical under-investment in mental health services. Countries must act urgently to ensure that mental health support is available to all.”

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11 Anxiety Triggers and How to Identify and Manage Them

It’s important to discover what triggers your anxiety. Being aware of the cause can help you better manage your anxiety.

Anxiety is a mental health condition that can cause feelings of worry, fear, or tension. For some people, anxiety can also cause panic attacks and physical symptoms like chest pain.

Anxiety disorders are incredibly common. They affect an estimated 40 million people in the United States, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.

What causes anxiety and anxiety disorders can be complicated. It’s likely that a combination of factors, including genetics and environmental reasons, play a role.

However, it’s clear that some events, emotions, or experiences may cause symptoms of anxiety to begin or may make them worse. These elements are called triggers.

Anxiety triggers can be different for each person, but many triggers are common among people with these conditions. Most people find they have multiple triggers. But for some people, anxiety attacks can be triggered for no reason at all.

For that reason, it’s important to discover any anxiety triggers that you may have. Identifying your triggers is an important step in managing them.

Keep reading to learn about these anxiety triggers and what you can do to manage your anxiety.

1. Health issues

A health diagnosis that’s upsetting or difficult, such as cancer or a chronic illness, may trigger anxiety or make it worse. This type of trigger is very powerful because of the immediate and personal feelings it produces.

You can help reduce anxiety caused by health issues by being proactive and engaged with a doctor. Talking with a therapist may also be useful, as they can help you learn to manage your emotions around your diagnosis.

2. Medications

Certain prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications may trigger symptoms of anxiety. That’s because active ingredients in these medications may make you feel uneasy or unwell.

Those feelings can set off a series of events in your mind and body that may lead to additional symptoms of anxiety.

Medicatioons that may trigger anxiety include:

birth control pills
cough and congestion medications
weight loss medications

Talk with a doctor about how these drugs make you feel, and consider an alternative that doesn’t trigger your anxiety or worsen your symptoms.

3. Caffeine

Many people rely on their morning cup of joe to wake up, but it might actually trigger or worsen anxiety.

According to a 2022 review, drinking about five cups of coffee increases anxiety and induces panic attacks in people with panic disorder.

In a 2020 Australian study involving 429 20-year-old adults over a 2-year period, consuming energy drinks increased anxiety in males but not in females.

Work to cut back your caffeine intake by substituting noncaffeinated options whenever possible.

4. Skipping meals

When you don’t eat, your blood sugar may drop. That can lead to jittery hands and a rumbling tummy. It can also trigger anxiety.

Eating balanced meals is important for many reasons. It provides you with energy and important nutrients. If you can’t make time for three meals a day, healthy snacks are a great way to prevent low blood sugar, feelings of nervousness or agitation, and anxiety.

Remember, food can affect your mood.

5. Negative thinking

Your mind controls much of your body, and that’s certainly true with anxiety. When you’re upset or frustrated, the words you say to yourself can trigger greater feelings of anxiety.

If you tend to use a lot of negative words when thinking about yourself, learning to refocus your language and feelings when you start down this path is helpful. Working with a therapist can be incredibly helpful with this process.

6. Financial concerns

Worries about saving money or having debt can trigger anxiety. Unexpected bills or money fears are triggers, too.

Learning to manage these types of triggers may require seeking professional help, such as from a financial advisor. Feeling you have a companion and a guide in the process may ease your concern.

7. Parties or social events

If a room full of strangers doesn’t sound like fun, you’re not alone. Events that require you to make small talk or interact with people you don’t know can trigger feelings of anxiety, which may be diagnosed as social anxiety disorder.

To help ease your worries or unease, you can always bring along a companion when possible. But it’s also important to work with a professional to find coping mechanisms that make these events more manageable in the long term.

8. Conflict

Relationship problems, arguments, disagreements — these conflicts can all trigger or worsen anxiety. If conflict particularly triggers you, you may need to learn conflict resolution strategies.

Also, talk with a therapist or other mental health expert to learn how to manage the feelings these conflicts cause.

9. Stress

Daily stressors like traffic jams or missing your train can cause anyone anxiety. But long-term or chronic stress can lead to long-term anxiety and worsening symptoms, as well as other health problems.

Stress can also lead to behaviors like skipping meals, drinking alcohol, or not getting enough sleep. These factors can trigger or worsen anxiety, too.

Treating and preventing stress often requires learning coping mechanisms. A therapist or counselor can help you learn to recognize your sources of stress and handle them when they become overwhelming or problematic.

10. Public events or performances

Public speaking, talking in front of your boss, performing in a competition, or even just reading aloud is a common trigger of anxiety. If your job or hobbies require this, your doctor or therapist can work with you to learn ways to be more comfortable in these settings.

Also, positive reinforcements from friends and colleagues can help you feel more comfortable and confident.

11. Personal triggers

These triggers may be difficult to identify, but a mental health specialist is trained to help you identify them. These may begin with a smell, a place, or even a song. Personal triggers remind you, either consciously or unconsciously, of a bad memory or traumatic event in your life.

Individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) frequently experience anxiety triggers from environmental triggers.

Identifying personal triggers may take time, but it’s important so you can learn to overcome them.

If you can identify and understand your triggers, you can work to avoid them and cope. You can learn specific coping strategies to handle the triggers when they happen.

Here are three tips for identifying triggers:

Start a journal: Write down when your anxiety is noticeable, and record what you think might have led to the trigger. Some apps can help you track your anxiety, too.
Work with a therapist: Some anxiety triggers can be difficult to identify, but a mental health specialist has training that can help you. They may use talk therapy, journaling, or other methods to find triggers.
Be honest with yourself: Anxiety can cause negative thoughts and poor self-assessments. This can make identifying triggers difficult because of anxious reactions. Be patient with yourself, and be willing to explore things in your past to identify how they may affect you today.

The most common symptoms of anxiety include:

uncontrollable worry
fear
muscle tension
a rapid heart rate
difficulty sleeping or insomnia
difficulty concentrating
physical discomfort
tingling sensation
restlessness
feeling on edge
irritability

If you experience these symptoms regularly for 6 months or more, you may have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Other types of anxiety disorders exist as well. The symptoms for those may be different than GAD.

For example, with panic disorder you may experience:

a rapid heart rate or palpitations
sweating
trembling
shaking
feeling as if your throat is closing

Although you may sometimes feel anxious for apparently no reason, there is usually an underlying cause, and the trigger may be beyond your awareness.

If you constantly feel anxious without knowing why, this is a symptom of generalized anxiety disorder.

In addition to the triggers listed above, the following are some of the possible reasons you may feel anxious for no reason:

Anxiety disorders may be hereditary. If someone in your family has an anxiety disorder, you’re at greater risk of having one, too.
People with free-floating anxiety usually have denser neurons in some areas of their brains and fewer in other areas, according to a 2021 brain imaging study.
Some medical conditions, such as arthritis, asthma, COPD, and diabetes, may be associated with anxiety.

If you’re feeling anxious but don’t know why, talking with a therapist may help determine what’s causing it.

If you believe you worry too much or suspect you have an anxiety disorder, it’s time to seek help. Recognizing anxiety is often difficult because the symptoms become common over time.

Start the discussion by talking with a doctor. They’ll discuss your symptoms, conduct a health history, and do a physical exam. They’ll want to rule out any possible physical problems that may be causing the issues, too.

From there, a doctor may choose to treat you with medication. They may also refer you to a mental health specialist, such as a psychologist or psychiatrist. These doctors can use a combination of talk therapy and medication to treat anxiety and prevent triggers.

Occasional anxiety is common, but chronic feelings of worry, fear, or dread are not. They’re a sign you should seek professional help.

The good news is that anxiety is a highly treatable mental health condition. However, many people with anxiety don’t seek treatment.

If your anxiety is impeding your day-to-day life, you should consider seeking help. A mental health specialist can help you find a treatment plan that eases your symptoms, and they can help you cope with your anxiety triggers.

Align the background: how to reduce anxiety?

Psychologists call increased anxiety a problem of our time: chronic stress, haste, a huge flow of information, political and economic instability, personal uncertainty - all these factors make the nervous system work to the limit. Anxiety reduces the general background of life and has a bad effect on the professional sphere. Many companies today are concerned about the psychological state of employees and are actively implementing programs for psychological relief, organizing meditations in the office, yoga classes, etc. At the same time, the demand for corporate psychologists is growing.

Employees themselves can also help themselves, the first step is to understand how anxiety works.

Freud first spoke about anxiety. He saw her as a guardian on the border of the conscious and the subconscious: when repressed feelings and experiences tend to “break through” into consciousness, anxiety appears that prevents this from happening. That is, its task is to protect against secondary injury.

Now psychologists separate anxiety and anxiety .

Alarm is event specific, it has a cause, it is valid.

For example, you do not have time to make a report and are worried - this is normal. After the situation is resolved, the anxiety will go away.

A anxiety is a stable personality trait, it is largely determined genetically. This type of anxiety has no apparent cause, it does not go away for a long period.

For example, if you still have enough time to turn in a report, but instead of working, you worry that you won't make it in time, that you will be poorly evaluated, that you will be fired, this is anxiety. After the submitted report, the nervous background is likely to remain.

However, anxiety and anxiety are related . If you are a priori anxious, then you meet any situation in anticipation of a threat. You need to know this peculiarity of yours and consciously analyze whether your experiences are justified. And if you (or your environment, the work team) are used to making an elephant out of a fly on every occasion, then you generally become more anxious. The psyche works in the same way in the opposite direction: the more calmly you treat situations, the lower the overall level of anxiety will be.

Anxious people, as a rule, are very attentive, scrupulous, they double-check everything several times. They are diligent and strive to do their job well. They are very afraid of forgetting and confusing something, therefore they are obligatory, and in companies, as a rule, they are in good standing.

But over time, such employees can burn out. Severe anxiety in a long period depletes the resources of the body, reduces attention - as a result, the employee makes mistakes, which feeds his anxiety even more. Vicious circle.

Anxiety interferes with career growth. Anxiety goes hand in hand with fear of failure, avoidance of difficulties, fear of superiors. With such “baggage” it is difficult to build a career, these qualities seriously interfere with implementation.

Anxiety reduces the degree of satisfaction with life, including the professional area. Anxious people are less satisfied with their jobs because their focus is on risks and threats, and they often fail to see the bright side and opportunities.

1. Take an anxiety test.

For example, this one. If you see high numbers, know that you tend to overreact to stressful situations, and when they occur, analyze how justified your anxiety is.

2. Do breathing exercises when you are very anxious.

Take a 10-minute pause and breathe slowly and deeply into your belly. Walk, if possible, go outside. After the break, look at the situation or problem again with a cool head.

3. Keep a diary of your emotional state.

Write down what makes you anxious and what thoughts trigger the experience. For example, “a colleague didn’t greet me because I did something wrong. It seems to me that colleagues are discussing me behind my back, but I don’t know why.” Think about what objective factors indicate that colleagues do not like you. The rest is your fantasy, a colleague might not notice you.

4. Choose a creative hobby.

Art therapy helps relieve stress: drawing, pottery, sand techniques, knitting, embroidery and others are shown.

5. Rest.

Life-work balance is essential for everyone, and if work duties keep you in an anxious state, good rest is vital for you. Follow the regime, leave time for yourself on weekdays and weekends. Processing will not bring you peace, and in an anxious state, people are ineffective.

6. Go in for sports, walk more.

Physical exercise is good for resetting.

These recommendations will be useful for your health and your career, because as Haruki Murakami wrote: there is strength in calmness. Be stronger and more resilient!

The opinion of the authors and experts may not coincide with the position of the editors hh.ru

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