Are we experiencing a mental health crisis?
As the United States continues to recover from the mental, physical, and emotional impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more Americans report experiencing worse mental health than before the pandemic, with many believing the nation is now reaching crisis levels.
A recent CNN and Kaiser Family Foundation survey polled 2,000 adults across the United States on the impact the last 2 ½ years have had on individual and family mental health. The survey provides an in-depth overview of the nation’s current mental health prognosis and valuable insight into mental health’s impact on individual and family dynamics, why those with mental health issues aren’t seeking treatment, and what is being done to address the growing mental health crisis.
What does the survey tell us about America’s mental health crisis?
Insights from the survey reveal that most participants have experienced first-hand the often devastating and distressing impacts of mental illness – whether it be themselves or their loved ones.
Of those surveyed by CNN/KFF, 9 in 10 participants believe that the United States is experiencing a mental health crisis. In addition, over two-thirds of participants identified the opioid epidemic as reaching crisis levels. Over half reported mental health among children and severe mental illness in adults as hitting crisis levels. Additional reports by CNN have covered the growing mental health crisis among children.
Between the start of the pandemic in 2020 and the survey period of July 28 through August 9, 2022 – over half of all participants reported that they or someone in their family had experienced a severe mental health crisis. The classification includes those who received in-patient mental health treatment, was deemed a threat to themselves or others, or engaged in self-harming behaviors.
When asked about individual mental health, participants reported feeling more anxious, more depressed, and more isolated than before the pandemic. A total of 1 in 5 participants rated their mental health as fair or poor. Instances of poor mental health ratings were outsized in those under the age of 30 and those with an income below $40,000 per year.
Similarly, 1 in 3 participants reported feeling anxious either constantly or on most days, and 1 in 5 reported being depressed constantly or on most days. Those numbers jumped to half of all participants under 30.
Original source can be found here.
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