The pandemic has taken its toll on the mental health of young adults

Perhaps not surprisingly, young adults are experiencing higher rates of depression and other mental health issues as the COVID-19 pandemic rages across the United States.

But how much higher are these cases than in the pre-pandemic past?

A new report led by Massachusetts General Hospital and written by experts including those at Harvard Medical School, Harvard University and Northeastern University, shows that young adults, ages 18 to 24, in all the country are experiencing higher rates of major depressive symptoms. The study aimed to determine the rates of depression in this age group and whether they changed from summer to early fall, as new areas of the country were experiencing epidemics of the virus. The new study followed one published in May, which saw higher cases of depression spanning all ages – depression was up 27% from the past.

This latest study showed that in October, 47.3% of young adults “had at least moderate depressive symptoms … the highest level since June,” he said.

“While the northeastern United States might have done slightly better in early summer, no region of the country was spared,” according to the study. “Anxiety rates have also increased in parallel. Conversely, if sleep disturbance is the most common symptom, it has decreased slightly, from 75.4% in May to 72.2% in October. “

The study also found that more young people have thoughts of harming or killing themselves. Overall, the rate of these thoughts for all adults from 2013 to 2014 was 3.4%. But for young adults in May, 32.2% of those polled said they had these thoughts. In October, this figure rose to 36.9%.

The survey found that mental health issues, including anxiety, mild depressive symptoms, moderate depressive symptoms, and sleep interruptions, were roughly the same across races and ethnicities. Based on gender, women were more likely to show symptoms.

Along with the mental health symptoms, of course, come the major life changes that the pandemic has brought about for many. Only one in five young adults said they had not experienced a major change. For others, nearly 51% said their school or university had closed, the most reported life change by the group. Next was the transition to working from home (41 percent), followed by a reduction in pay driven by fewer hours or demand for work (around 28 percent), with 26 percent saying they had been made redundant or had lost their jobs.

“The next US president will have to deal with much broader impacts than COVID-19 infection alone in trying to deal with the pandemic,” the study said in its conclusion. “Neither candidate provided much detail on their response to the mental health consequences of the illness and efforts to contain it. In line with our May results, our survey indicates that the next administration will rule a country where unprecedented numbers of young people suffer from depression, anxiety and, for some, suicidal thoughts.