"COVID-19 and Mental Health, What Has Been the Impact?"

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent orders issued to prevent its spread can cause the appearance of mental health symptoms, both of the people who have been infected with the virus, as well as of the rest of the population that has been affected by the uncertainty associated with a pandemic and by the indirect effects on mental health, associated with loneliness, lack of social interactions, anxiety, depression, overwhelm, among others, giving figures that confirm it in older people and people with chronic diseases; children and adolescents; people who are helping with the response, such as doctors and other health care providers; and people who have mental health problems. In this way, people in social isolation, with restricted mobility and with little contact with those around them are more vulnerable to suffering from psychiatric complications, which range from isolated symptoms to the development of a mental disorder, such as insomnia, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. The mental health and well-being of entire societies have been seriously affected by this crisis and it is a priority to address these two elements urgently. However, people caught up in fragile humanitarian settings or conflict situations risk having their mental health totally overlooked.