young adults have highest anxiety, depression rates amid covid

by: lynn giesbrechtthroughout the pandemic, the elderly have been the most at risk of becoming seriously ill from covid-19, but the younger generations are taking the hardest hit when it comes to mental health, according to a recent study.the onset of covid-19 brought with it higher rates of anxiety and depression. those rates have only continued to grow as the pandemic wears on, particularly for young adults, said nuelle novik, an assistant professor of social work at the university of regina and researcher with the saskatchewan population health and evaluation unit (spheru).“a lot of people sort of assume that older adults are struggling the most, and certainly yes, this is a challenge for older adults … but we’re really seeing a significant impact in terms of those folks 34 and younger,” novik said.in partnership with the saskatchewan health research foundation, spheru has been sifting through saskatchewan-specific data collected by mental health research canada. the first survey was sent out to participants in august and the second in february, from which the data has just now been processed.the study found that, between august and february, rates of anxiety and depression increased. these mental health concerns were highest in young adults ages 18 to 34, with women more likely to experience them than men. seasonal affective disorder also attributed to more people reporting feelings of depression through the winter months.young people may be experiencing more mental illness than the older generations for a number of reasons, said novik, not least of which is the high amount of uncertainty over the future.this is the age group just graduating high school, navigating university, working part-time jobs or trying to begin their careers, she said.“this particular age group, they’re the ones that are often working in the service industry, they’re working the part-time jobs. certainly, even just in terms of the financial part of their life, that’s all uncertain,” novik said.“plus, i mean, you’re at the age where you don’t necessarily think about your own mortality in the same way as people who are a little older.”but even as more people are reporting feeling unable to manage their mental health, less people are reaching out for support.before the pandemic, 34 per cent of saskatchewan’s survey participants reported accessing mental health services from a professional. now only 21 per cent reported this.rebecca rackow, director of advocacy, research and public policy development for the saskatchewan division of the canadian mental health association, said demand for the organization’s mental health services has come and gone in waves through the pandemic.during holidays, demand has risen drastically as families cannot gather together. surprising to rackow was the spike in calls when vaccinations began opening in the province, but she said many people were uncertain about vaccine safety and what it meant for them. when case numbers are low and restrictions loosened, demand falls.when people do reach out, however, they are more likely to already be in crisis, rackow said. many are also angry at how difficult it has been for them to access mental health services.“they’re angry about not being able to get services right away, so we’re seeing that happen more now, like within the last few months, than we’ve seen ever before,” she said, noting she has had calls from every age group.to combat the continued growth in mental health challenges, novik said people need to continue checking in with loved ones like they did last march, even as pandemic fatigue sets in.“this is not the time to sort of withdraw and isolate from one another in those ways. we need to still try and stay connected,” she said.lgiesbrecht@postmedia.com