Colombian mental health during quarantine – Life

Three out of four respondents to the ‘Solidarity Study: Social Response to Government Measures to Control the New Coronavirus During the Early Stage in Colombia’ showed signs of some alteration in their mental health during the last 21 days of quarantine. Of this 75 percent, 54 percent said they felt nervous; 53 percent tired; 46 percent impatient; and 34 percent felt anger or rage.

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This is one of the conclusions of the Profamilia investigation, carried out online between April 8 and 20, which collected information from 3,549 Colombians over 18 years of age. The study, inspired by a survey by the Imperial College of London, investigated “how Colombians face the pandemic in different cities of the country and the measures to control it,” explained Lina Castaño, project and research manager of the entity.

Young people between 18 and 29 years old are the most affected group in the sample in their mental health, according to the entity. This population reported having felt higher levels of anger, nervousness, restlessness and impatience during that same period of time, compared to other age groups. 59 percent of this segment receives monthly family income of less than 1 million pesos.

“Young people are worried because their savings are going to run out, because they don’t have a job or because they have to suspend their classes,” explains Marta Royo, the entity’s executive director.

The president of the Colombian Association of Psychiatry, Astrid Arrieta, adds that “young people are at a stage of wanting to relate and with these mandatory isolation measures they may think that they are restricting their freedom. If you add financial problems to this, the probability of suffering from depression is very high ”.

The report also shows that half of its respondents are responsible for the care of a person in the home and are responsible for minors, older adults or someone else. Their mental states need to be tracked, experts say, because “caregivers of chronic patients are more likely to get sick than a population that doesn’t care,” says Arrieta.

Three reactions

With the information collected, the researchers did a group analysis, explains Juan Carlos Rivillas, director of research at Profamilia, and differentiated three, which react differently to the pandemic and the physical distance measurements.

“We cared about knowing how the mental health of people in quarantine was, what the positive aspects of staying at home have been, what care strategies they have implemented and the worst situations regarding the measures that have been taken,” says Rivillas. .

From the study universe, The first group was made up of 26 percent of the sample and it was called “those who suffer.” It was made up of a majority of women (73%), of whom 64 percent were under the age of 29. More than half of the group receives monthly family income of less than 2 million pesos, a third have savings and more than half have a chronic illness. They do not have healthy habits at home, they have not been able to develop a hobby nor do they take all measures to prevent the spread of the virus. As a consequence, during isolation time 3 out of 4 four people in this group have suffered from anxiety and depression.

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The second group was ‘those who resist’ (34%). According to Rivillas, they are the ones who did not easily accept the self-isolation measures, but who have been able to follow them. It is made up of men, mostly without disease, who do not live with the sick. They are under 39 and almost half have savings. “They feel that the virus is not close to them and that taking distance measures is an overreaction,” explains Lina Castaño. 12 percent have shown signs of nervousness, anxiety, or depression.

In the last group, ‘those who accept’ (40%), the majority were older than 49 years. “They were people who feel that the virus is not close to them, have a good income level, have taken the measures without difficulties and have had more activities at home,” Rivillas explains. Although they suffered from emotional disturbances, they did not reach the levels of the other groups.

“It was interesting to review these characteristics. This means that Colombians are experiencing the pandemic differently and this requires mental health interventions designed for these groups, which can be done through mobile platforms or other tools, “Rivillas explains.

The report underscores the need to search for effective alternatives to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. It is in this context that health services are paramount. According to expert projections, the crisis can last for months. So, Rivillas says, “We have to start learning to live in a new way and design mental health services focused on the needs of groups.”

The most important challenge is that all health services are comprehensive, that they are not interrupted and that they are regular.