Worrying article in the Guardian

[SpongeCake23]

www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/16/uk-lockdown-causing-serious-mental-illness-in-first-time-patients?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1589620149

People with no history of mental illness are developing serious psychological problems for the first time as a result of the lockdown, amid growing stresses over isolation, job insecurity, relationship breakdown and bereavement, the Royal College of Psychiatrists has disclosed.

Adults and children are having psychotic episodes, mania and depression, with some taken to hospital because of the heavy toll on their mental wellbeing.

Eight weeks into lockdown measures, the Royal College of Psychiatrists is warning that services could be overwhelmed by “a tsunami of mental illness”

Psychiatrists are also concerned about stress linked to the fear of contracting Covid-19. Being cut off from family and friends, and disruption to normal NHS services, are also exacerbating existing mental health problems. Some now refer to the emergence of “lockdown anxiety”

A specialist in the psychiatric care of children and young people said they had seen more under-18s with autism having to be admitted for inpatient care because they were “not coping with changes re Covid” and others “with deteriorating mental health state and increase in significant self-harm and increase in completed suicides”.

Something needs to be done and quickly, in my opinion.

This is going to have a longer lasting impact and more devastating after effects than the virus itself.
We’ve already had a family member commit suicide during the lockdown, because of being in the shielding catogery, but also a struggling alcoholic. I luckily don’t know anyone who has died of Covid, but I know people who have had it and are now fine.

This is a virus with a very high survival rate, I’m terrified for the future, especially for my son.

No. That's not what I said. I said this is not about resilience.

Ps mental health conditions don't discriminate against those with "resilience" you know?

I agree with what MayDay and a couple of others have posted. I think if you have already endured adversity/health issues you may be better placed to cope with this. Obviously in 10 storeys situation or similar it wouldn't be much help but would with the relentless monotony of lockdown.

In ordinary times, yes. But perhaps not now. Perhaps now our coping mechanisms allow us to keep going where someone without that experience may not feel able to.

Or maybe the coping mechanisms we have won't hold out for 2 years or however, long and we will end up even worse.

The reason alot of coping mechanisms arent healthy, is that they don't actually help. They often store problems up, all coming out at once.

This pandemic is going to go on ages. Yet so many view it as a sprint.....if you are doing OK now, doesnt mean you will in a month. Or 6 months. In 6 months, people who have suffered now may be ok. And those of us that are ok now, might be worse than those who struggled early on. Where will your resilience be then?

@MayDayFightsBack I lost more family members to suicide after the war than to the fighting and bombs. It still affects my gran today, as she hoards stuff after being bombed out and has depression.

The one thing we can all do is not judge. Two people in the same situation can have very different responses. The problem with lockdown is we can compare similar experiences. Then some people feel that others are weak because they couldn’t cope, or boast about being more resilient.

I am struggling to be honest about my own struggles because “others have it so much worse” and I “coped fine when tragedy hit last year”

Previous adversity and health issues do not on the whole increase people's capacity for 'resilience', despite the occasional heartwarming story of a brave individual who has overcome all the odds.

Poorly supported long term health issues and repeated adversity tend to grind people down and reduce their ability to cope long term. Running on cortisol comes at a high cost. Shit life syndrome is a thing. Health inequalities are a thing.

'Resilience' is mostly for the worried well.

Peggysgettingcrazy

You mentioned it's not a sprint. I absolutely agree. I've done sonething like this for years and I could do this for years. That is the point. I know I can make it out the other side precisely because I've done that before.

My quality of life right now isnt close to being the worst I've had. I think that's key in how manageable a person (in an otherwise favourable position) finds this situation.

OP I'm sorry to hear of the loss you've suffered.

I do think, to some extent, the War was different as there was a social expectation of supporting one another and "doing one's duty". I know that could often mask other malaises, but it was rather different from today's, frankly, often self-centred culture. I do wonder if some (only some, of course) people who are finding lockdown hard would be helped if they went and joined a local volunteer group and helped others - even if just by making some calls to support those shielding or whatever.

But yes, we have to think very carefully about whether the cure will turn out to have worse repercussions than the virus.

That is the point. I know I can make it out the other side precisely because I've done that before.

Actually, you don't. You believe you will cope and thats great. But you have no idea what the next 18 months will throw you. I hope it doesn't happen....but those who claim they know they definitely can cope, often end up being the ones it hits hardest.

Agree the resilience thing is a really dodgy road to go down. The idea that people who have MH problems are weak is super dodgy.

I had a pretty shit time as a kid with a birth defect that meant lots of time in children's hospital with pain, uncertainty, multiple surgeries etc. My reaction to that was not healthy. I am resilient, one of my friends said that was a great thing about me. But I'm not a very stable, happy person.

The sort of behaviours I have are very similar to a friend who was abused as a child.

Trauma in childhood is not a good thing.

In the wars, propaganda was important. As we are seeing now. There must have been suicide, MH problems, but it was a different time. And not a good story to tell later.

Did the teenagers who went to fight in WW1 gain resilience? Some of them might. Some of them got PTSD.

When people are keeping at it you have no idea how they are really feeling.

People have self medicated through the years with alcohol. Tobacco. Opium tinctures used to be over the counter in UK. Valium was famous in previous decades as the 'mother's little helper'.

The kids in the orphanages caecesu era. Resilient? Some may have have been ok. On the whole, not, though.

I mean the list goes on and on.

Adversity breeds resilience in some and ruins others. For some orgs eg old school army, the price of fucking some up is a price worth paying.

Humans are social animals. And literally animals, apes. Remove our ability to connect, socialise, meet potential partners, peer group, Family etc and you put us in s very unnatural position indeed. Children not able to play with friends. Teens not able to socialise and date etc.

To brush it off with, oh well at least you're not dead etc is a really narrow, shallow view.

Mental health issues because they've had to stay at home for 8 weeks and not live their usual hampster wheel lives? Gosh people have become so fragile.🤦‍♀️

Imagine what the Iraqis, Lybians, Palestinians and Sryians have to permanently live through. I wonder if they have mental health issues 🧐

Peggysgettingcrazy

What a cheering and uplifting sentiment, thank you Peggy. However I will be absolutely fine, no doubt you're genuinely pleased to hear.

Mental health issues because they've had to stay at home for 8 weeks and not live their usual hampster wheel lives? Gosh people have become so fragile.🤦‍♀️

Oh piss off. People are losing their livelihoods they're not losing their shit cos they can't go for a Starbucks.

People in South Africa are being hospitalised with malnutrition due to having absolutely no way of earning a living, thanks to lockdown. Mayne they should just be a bit more resilient

What a cheering and uplifting sentiment, thank you Peggy. However I will be absolutely fine, no doubt you're genuinely pleased to hear.

Give over. Anyone who thinks they are absolutely protected from mental health issues are either very concieted or naive.

But apparently me disagreeing with you means I will be happy if you do suffer MH problems? Is that really, the only place you can take this discussion?

Why are people saying this might last years?
I am lucky enough not to be in danger of losing my home or income (disability benefits) but am autistic and have lost twenty hours a week support (replaced with online). I have experienced a downturn in mental health and a return to self harm though doing slightly better now.
But why are people saying this could last years?!

It's awful but it's not the lockdown causing the problems. It's the virus.

Jobs would still be at risk (perhaps more so) without our half hearted lockdown. The economy would be even more disrupted, MH trauma as bad and likely worse.

One forgotten group likely suffering huge psychological trauma are care home residents (and their loved ones). Plenty don't have dementia and will be perfectly aware of what's happening. I can only imagine how traumatic it must be to know you're stuck somewhere with no protection whatsoever. Knowing you're a sitting duck. How helpless they must feel. Awful.

We can't make it completely better. However much we wish we could. A we can do is mitigate the damage. And there are measures we can take to do that.

Tests, PPE for frontline staff, drugs and equipment, treat Covid early, masks for the public. Other countries have managed this. So can we. That's the start of easing lockdown safely. If we want to protect lives and the economy. That's our way to start getting out of this.

@10storeylovesong I am sorry that you and your family are struggling so much, you really can't continue like this, 3 hrs sleep at 'night' is simply not enough physically and mentally to sustain you. Please consider taking some time off sick, longer if necessary with a GP signing you off.

I know part of you will feel that you can't, that you will be letting your colleagues down at an already difficult time, but give yourself permission to put yourself first.

Take care

The quotes in the article make it clear that many aspects of the pandemic are causing mental health issues - people are getting ptsd from the deaths, or anxiety from no ppe in the workplace.

But people seem determined to make it all about the lockdown. Because that would mean there is someone to blame and a way out. There isn’t a way out of the pandemic. It may be best to get rid of lockdown, but it will also push other groups into mental ill health - more people in dangerous jobs, more grief stricken.

In terms of resilience and ptsd, these are not opposites; I have both. PTSD is a coping mechanism. I kept going through the original trauma. I kept going through PTSD and I will keep going through the pandemic.

Getting mental health problems is not the reverse of resilience at all. They are often what people get when they don’t give up on their responsibilities, didn’t give in to walking out on kids, or essential work, or developing drug or drink problems.

ravensoaponarope
The virus might be around for the next few years. And it could be at least a year until there's mass availability of a vaccine. The whole world likely needs to adapt to some longer-term changes. But they need not be to the extent of lockdowns. Depending what other measures are taken to manage it. It could just mean things like more spaced out seating when restaurants reopen, masks on public transport, more work from home, continued focus on hand hygiene, etc.

Re lockdown. It need only take weeks for us to take the same measures other countries have done (at worse months if being back of the queue means a wait).

The measures outlined in my last post would help reduce our infection rate and keep it at a more manageably low level. Enabling us to be ready to try safely easing lockdown. There's no guarantees but it's a very good start.

Oh we'd also need to follow the rest of the world in implementing border restrictions. We're currently one of the only countries in the world who haven't imposed checks and/or quarantine. Makes lockdown rather pointless.

@10storeylovesong you need to get signed off sick. The Police have historically been awful at supporting staff with personal difficulties but they are getting better. You should see occupational health and your GP and put your own wellbeing ahead of your job for a while.

@10storeylovesong .. Just wanted to send you a hug, that sounds really tough x

Resilience is just a word used to identify people who have learned to cope in certain situations for one reason or another. It isn't meant to be an identifier of weakness.

Peggysgettingcrazy

I said I'll be fine. My being fine isn't a personal attack on you and shouldn't be considered an affront to any issues you and many others are experiencing as a result of the lockdown.

Also I'm sorry you're not finding the online support as helpful as in person support @ravensoaponarope. It's another reason why we need to prioritise getting more PPE. So that more MH support and social workers would be available for face to face care.

I hope you continue to do better with reducing/stopping your self-harm. I'm sorry you're struggling during the pandemic.

Just with regards to the resilience thing... I've cut down lifeless bodies, Ive held people's hands and watched the life ebb out of them in car accidents then told their parents, I've picked up body parts of the train track, I've sat with the victims of sexual, child and domestic abuse, I was a first responder at the Manchester bombing, I was front line in the Salford riots. I have plenty of resilience!