This is all anonymised data, and i presume that this is not the first time it's ever been done. I should say, though, nearly 20 different countries, but 14 of em were european. And they actually didn't find a big spike in those. They did find a spike in overall calls to help lines over the first six weeks or so,. insorve the beginning of a surge in a country. But what they saw was that a lot of that was being driven by calls about to discuss people's fears.
Studying mental health in populations is not a simple task, but as the pandemic has continued, mounting concerns have mobilised researchers.
Now, researchers have used data from helplines in 20 countries to assess the impacts that COVID, as well as associated political and public health measures like financial assistance programs and lockdowns, have had on mental health. Contrary to expectations, loneliness and concerns about the impacts of the pandemic drove most of the callers, rather than imminent threats such as suicidal thoughts or abuse.
News: Millions of helpline calls reveal how COVID affected mental health
Omicron
We will be discussing Omicron in an upcoming Coronapod on 17 December. If you would like to ask any questions of our reporters about Omicron, please get in touch on Twitter: @naturepodcast or email: podcast@nature.com
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