KITCHENER — It seems that nobody is untouched by anxiety and other mental health issues in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, says the head of the local branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).
“Seventy-seven per cent of Canadians, if you ask them right now, say they are doing fine,” said Helen Fishburn, executive director of CMHA Waterloo Wellington. “We know they’re not fine.”
Mental Health Week runs from May 4 to 10. This year’s theme is wrapped around promoting social connection during the pandemic with the hashtag #GetReal.
CMHA often cites statistics that about one in five Canadians are impacted by a mental health condition. Fishburn said she believes that figure is much higher during the pandemic.
“There’s not a single person among us whose life hasn’t been disrupted, who is not anxious or worried about their own health, the health of their children or their parents, what is happening with their job, their future,” said Fishburn.
Even with a rise in the number of people who may require professional help to deal with the added mental health issues in response to the pandemic, Fishburn hopes people will not assume the agency is overburdened and decide not to reach out.
“I want to make sure those people know that help is here, that we are working with our counselling partners across the region to make sure we have the capacity to respond to the new levels of anxiety and stress and depression we are seeing,” said Fishburn.
The #GetReal hashtag is one way to begin the conversation.
“The hashtags is all about connecting with your own thoughts, your own feelings and emotions and being able to share that, which is so vital as we go through this crisis,” said Fishburn.
CMHA WW collected all of its online resources on a web page it calls Here4Help.
“We have taken everything that we could find and we have organized it and categorized it and made it easy to find the online resources, as well as connect to virtual care like counselling,” said Fishburn. “So if you need something to help your child or you are an adult who is struggling, you have seniors you want to support, you’re an employer or a health care worker you don’t have to go searching for things.”
When the pandemic first took hold and self quarantine measures were put in place, there was concern by some that rates of suicide may increase, but Fishburn said so far that has not the case.
“We have seen a rise in anxiety and stress and worry, we have not seen an increase in suicide rates or incidents of suicide,” she said.
People seeking immediate help can still call the agency’s Here247 phone line at 1-844-437-3247.
“When people are making that call we need to respond to them very quickly,” said Fishburn.
CMHA has launched a number of initiatives to assist people with coping with the pandemic and offering different resources and ways to reach out for help.
Fishburn said as self quarantine has stretched from weeks to month, a kind of quarantine fatigue is beginning to be experienced by many.
“People are at home, they are fed up and feel caged in. They are worried, have stress and many people have had some significant financial impacts,” she said.
Many people have the added stress of homeschooling children or being concerned about elderly family members.
“Sadly we have seen the crisis shift to long term care and retirement homes and that has been really tragic,” said Fishburn. “But from a community perspective, people have really been doing what we have asked them to do, which is amazing.”
One initiative CMHA launched in April is Here4Healthcare, a specialized care team and set of online resources to meet the mental health needs of front line health care workers dealing directly with COVID-19.
“It’s intended for people who are really facing this crisis and caring for ill people,” said Fishburn. “So far referrals have been low, but understandably because those health care workers are still in the trenches. They haven’t had a chance to take a breath yet.”
Most mental health, addictions and counselling services have moved to virtual care in response to the pandemic.
“People are relieved they don’t have to leave their homes to get the supports that need. They don’t want to put themselves at risk,” said Fishburn.
She said there are exceptional cases where face-to-face care is still a necessity.
“We’re not going to let people who are really ill suffer and struggle,” said Fishburn. “We are going to put our staff in (personal protective equipment) and make sure they are protected and we are going to care for those people, because that’s what we do.”
