Page 62 - Retail Pharmacy Assistants - November 2020

60 BODY & SOUL STRESS, ANXIETY AND MENTAL HEALTH RISKS RETAIL PHARMACY ASSISTANTS • NOV 2020 BTy Nerine Zoio. he Covid-19 crisis has caused massive disruption worldwide, affecting people’s wellbeing, but being stressed and anxious doesn’t necessarily translate into a mental health problem. The level of stress and anxiety experienced in Australia this year is indicated by the 25 per cent increase in calls to Lifeline, initially driven by bushfires, then coronavirus. When a second wave hit in Victoria, which resulted in thousands of people being infected and hundreds dying, the mental health toll became pronounced. Lifeline recorded a 22 per cent increase in calls from the state when the Victorian government locked down several public housing towers, as an example. The increase was 30 per cent when stage four restrictions were announced. “This has undoubtedly taken its toll on the collective body and soul,” Swinburne University Professor of Psychology Greg Murray said of the anxiety experienced due to Covid-19. However, he emphasises that no “strong” data has emerged yet that points to how serious the problem is in terms of effects on mental health. “We don’t yet know the extent to which the virus will impact prevalence rates for mental disorders or its impact on the economy,” Professor Murray said. “That’s not to say we shouldn’t be sensitive towards each other, particularly people having a rough time of it, but it should be kept in mind that having a rough time and experiencing stress is not synonymous with having a mental disorder. “The reason I say this is because, if you go out to the population at the moment and ask people about their anxiety and their mood, there’ll be a lot