Survivors of Covid-19 show increased rate of psychiatric disorders

[Lua]

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/03/survivors-of-covid-19-show-increased-rate-of-psychiatric-disorders-study-finds

I hear many people say: "Your chances of dying are so small" weight this against X.

I think this is a short sighteded comment. The reduction in people available to work, treat and educate will have a large impact in society, even if no one dies. There are also an increasing number of side effects that we are just learning about. Reducing spread should be in every ones mind, even if young and healthy

(and no, I am not saying total lockdown is the answer. I just don't think, everyone going back to life as there isn't a pandemic is also the answer - even if you shield a portion of the population)

I knew that people in ITU experience high rates of PTSD but I am surprised that it relates to outpatients at high rates.

@ScrapThatThen

I knew that people in ITU experience high rates of PTSD but I am surprised that it relates to outpatients at high rates.

300 of the sample (75%) were inpatients, with an average stay of 2 weeks.

The study also says

"Our findings mirror the results from previous coronaviruses outbreak studies, where the psychiatric morbidities ranged from 10% to 35% in the post-illness stage".

In other words - there is nothing here that wasn't expected, and that isn't seen in hospitalised survivors of other coronaviruses. Its a very limited study of course, and we are no-where near being able to see the actual long term effects of Covid 19, but this study really just says that being hospitalised for it has the same psychiatric effect that being hospitalised for any coronavirus does; no more, no less.

People act like even minor cases of coronavirus among their friends are near-death experiences. The friend I had who came up with a positive test had to endure weeks of handwringing and people saying "thank God you're not on a ventilator!" and other assorted charming things...when he had a mild cough and symptoms less severe than last time he had influenza.

It's not surprising that anxiety would be extremely high about this condition, when many people drastically underestimate the average age of death, average age of hospitalization, and chances of making it out of the hospital alive if hospitalized.