One of the most talked about topics in today’s society is mental health. Many people wonder why the population’s mental health has declined so much over the years. Specifically, the last year has seen a drastic decrease in mental health, especially in the younger generation. Social isolation and seclusion has made many people feel alone and that there is no where to turn to. We know mental health diagnoses like depression and anxiety have had effects on all aspects of people’s lives. Symptoms can lead to poor work performance, decreased well being, and negatively affecting interpersonal relationships. COVID-19 has taken some of these symptoms and made them even worse. It is unknown how long it will take the population to bounce back mentally after living through a pandemic.
In the study “Savoring the Moment: A Link Between Affectivity and Depression”, negative and positive affectivity was used to determine risk factors for depression. In order to help with depression treatments, we need to understand how temporal domains influence savoring. The savoring capacity of an individual is described as the capacity for one to attend, appreciate, and enhance the experience of one’s life. The study concluded that both positive and negative associativity were in fact associated both with depression and three savoring temporal domains. They specifically found that savoring could in fact reduce the symptoms of depression in people with low positive affectivity and high negative affectivity. Therefore, understanding how savoring is influential can help with future measures in terms of depression.
The statistics of the mental health decline are terrifying when it is put into perspective. The article “The Implications of COVID-19 for Mental Health and Substance Use” show a steep increase in individuals experiencing symptoms of anxiety disorder and/or depressive disorder. It is seen that from January-June 2019 there were 11.0% of people with symptoms while in January 2021 there were 41.1%. Many young adults have suffered the consequences of the pandemic, including school closures and loss of income. The younger generation was already at a high risk for poor mental health and now many are suffering from it as well. Specifically, 56% of young adults aged 18-24 reported symptoms of anxiety and depression during the pandemic and 26% endorsed suicidal thoughts. The article “Mental Health and Coping during Covid-19” displays ways that people can learn to combat negative symptoms and in turn come out with more resilience. They mention practices such as taking breaks, taking care of your body, making time for yourself, and connecting with others.
People need help more than ever and after the loss we have all felt through the past year, every person deserves that. Life is so short and as seen in both articles, we need to live in the moment before poor mental health engulfs all of our lives. The importance of taking care of ourselves rings true now more than ever. Every person has had a different experience while in isolation, so checking in on your friends and family is so important. As stated, we need to savor the moment and engage in activities that make us happy. Learning how to deal with negative thoughts and seeking help is important in the lives of all young adults. No one should feel like they have no help when there are so many resources available. We need to educate our youth how to take care of themselves in their young adult years so that mental health does not continue to decline.
Citations:
Kahrilas, I. J., Smith, J. L., Silton, R. L., & Bryant, F. B. (2020). Savoring the moment: A link between affectivity and depression. International Journal of Wellbeing,10(2), 19-36. doi:10.5502/ijw.v10i2.779
Mental health and coping during covid-19. (2021, January 2021). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html
Nirmita Panchal, R., & 2021, F. (2021, April 14). The implications of Covid-19 for mental health and substance use. Retrieved from https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/the-implications-of-covid-19-for-mental-health-and-substance-use/
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