The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted our lives in many different ways, so its effect on our mental health shouldn’t be that surprising. At the height of the pandemic, “mental health” was one of Google’s most-searched terms.
Anxiety and depression
In March this year, the World Health Organization announced that, during the first year of the pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and depression spiked by a massive 25%. It noted: “The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a 27.6% increase in cases of major depressive disorder (MDD) and a 25.6% increase in cases of anxiety disorders (AD) worldwide in 2020.”
In South Africa, 24% of the population is experiencing depressive symptoms