More than one in three young people suffer from anxiety or depression

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a “brutal impact” on the mental health of young adults in Quebec, as more than a third of them suffer from symptoms of anxiety and even depression.

In a study by the University of Sherbrooke released Tuesday in collaboration with the firm Léger, we learn that 37% of young adults between 18 and 24 years old meet criteria for anxiety or major depression. The survey was conducted from September 4 to 14 in seven regions of Quebec.

“We were surprised that young people are the most affected and not the elderly, who have nevertheless experienced significant isolation and who are more likely to die from the coronavirus”, launches the D^re Mélissa Généreux, professor at the University of Sherbrooke and one of the researchers behind the study.

“In fact, this rate systematically decreased with each 10 years,” she adds, adding that only 10% of those 65 and over showed signs of anxiety or depression.

“Serious consequences”

Mistrust of the authorities, a quicker adherence to false beliefs and the fact of obtaining information from less reliable sources are phenomena identified as being more pronounced among anxious 18 to 24 year olds.

For María Eugenia Longo, professor at the National Institute for Scientific Research (INRS), this situation was foreseeable. Unlike other strata of society, the health crisis has affected all spheres of young adult life.

“The impact of the pandemic on young people has been brutal from all points of view. We closed the schools, we expelled them first from the labor market, we pushed them to come back to live with their parents for lack of income, [etc.]», Explains M^me Longo.

“We’ll have to [mettre en place] specific medium and long-term measures to support young people, that is clear. We will have to make societal choices. If nothing is done in the coming weeks or months, it could have serious consequences, ”she says.

According to the president of the order of psychologists of Quebec, the D^re Christine Grou, we will have to quickly take care of the psychological state of the population in these times of crisis. Otherwise, the impacts are likely to extend beyond the pandemic.

“The second wave may be more difficult psychologically than the first, warns D^re Grou. If we don’t take care of mental health, mental health will take care of us. ”

“And it’s already started,” she says.