As the pandemic continues across the globe, with many of us still quarantining at home and social distancing from others, we have seen many economic, social and psychological effects. HealthDay Reporter, Steven Reinberg says there could be an increased spike and rise of suicides. With many people not being able to see or talk to others daily, the stress from jobs and isolation can cause loneliness for some people.
Chief of psychology services at VA Pugel South Health Care System, Mark Reger says, “On top of that, community and religious support may be more difficult to find, and anxiety and fear may affect people who already faced mental health or substance use challenges before the crisis.” Public health is directly affected by COVID-19 as many people are having to deal with the effects of getting laid off or furloughed; not knowing how the next couple of months will turn out. President of the American Association of Suicidology, Jonathan Singer says, “It could also just be what we think of as non-physical trauma, which is where there’s more arguing and fighting, and harsh and critical parenting and more conflict between siblings, so just more of a tense situation, which could increase suicide risk among youth.”
A supporting and positive cast like parents, siblings and families are able to relieve this sort of stress, fear and anxiety. The National Suicide Prevention Life line, 1-800-273-8255 is always still an option for many individuals who feel they need additional support. With facetime options like zoom, skype and other face-calling applications, reaching other families and socializing remotely can replace the physical interactions we once had before. (https://consumer.healthday.com/infectious-disease-information-21/coronavirus-1008/as-coronavirus-pandemic-hits-u-s-experts-worry-about-rise-in-suicides-756751.html)
The Blog above was written by Michael Huang, our research assistant in 2021. At that time, he was a student at SUNY New Paltz, working remotely from NYC.