It’s Mental Health Awareness Month

Global mental health in a post-pandemic world

The Covid-19 pandemic brought forth a wave of decline in the mental well-being of the global population. The cocktail of uncertainty, isolation, blurring of work-life boundaries, and increased pressure on family life have led to a measurable rise in clinical depression, mental breakdowns, and burn-outs. Caregivers are among those who were hit the hardest with 1 in 2 physicians and 1 in 3 nurses experiencing burn-out.

Since the pandemic, there has been a substantial rise in those who experience anxiety and depression.  In the first year of the pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports a huge 25% increase in the global rise of anxiety and depression.  Since then, the impact of mental health is still being uncovered and there has been a huge effort to increase the preparedness of mental health resources and professionals in countries across the world.

As of 2022, the pandemic is receding, but we are only beginning to see the after-effects of the lifestyle changes caused by the lockdown. In particular, global sleep health has declined – and this is bad news for the mental health statistics. 

Sleep and mental health

Read also: Sleep Deprivation in College Students

All available research shows the deep interconnection between mental health and sleep. When sleep suffers, mental health also declines. 

Sleep debt of as little as 2 hours per night and/or bedtime after 2 am has also been associated with greater depressive symptoms. In young adults, these effects have been proven to manifest themselves even after one night of poor sleep.

Sleep deprivation sets the stage for negative thinking and emotional vulnerability: the Mental Health Coalition reports that 73% of students experience some form of mental illness during their academic careers. The coalition also says that nearly one-third have extreme depression that interferes with their ability to function, over 80% feel overwhelmed by their workload but only about 25% of students with a mental health issue seek help.

Within corporations too, sleep deprivation takes its toll on mental health. Adults report increased feelings of stress and overwhelm (42%), irritability (43%), and anxiety (35%) due to poor sleep. 

Poor sleepers are seven times more likely to feel helpless and five times more likely to feel alone, compared to those getting enough rest. For individuals with pre-existing mental health issues, lack of sleep can be particularly dangerous as it lowers the threshold for suicidal thoughts and behaviors. 

In short, lack of sleep is a major trigger for poor mental health. 

Read also: Sleep to Reduce Anxiety: The Natural Treatment

How to improve your sleep hygiene

There are many things we as individuals can do to improve our sleep hygiene and safeguard our mental health. These include everything from arranging the perfect bedroom and balancing work and time off, to avoiding blue light in the evening or picking up a power nap habit. 

Studies show that just a 20-minute power nap can improve mood, productivity, and overall well-being. This is why Restworks encourages the use of sleep solutions in the workplace. Read more about the benefits of napping. 

How to assess your mental health crisis?

Apart from taking care of your sleep health, we encourage everyone to honestly assess their mental health and seek adequate help if needed. The MHA provides easy online self-test tools which can be found here. 

If you feel depressed and have thoughts of suicide or harming yourself, do not hesitate to call a mental health hotline. There is help available for you.