50% struggled: Singapore youth mental health issues Highlight due to Covid-19
The Covid-19 pandemic had an enormous psychosocial impact on the mental well-being of Singaporeans young and old alike, leading to increased usage of mental health services to remedy anxiety, and other youth mental issues such as depression, existential crises and anxieties.
Singapore Covid-19 Mental Wellness Taskforce’s (CoMWT) convened in October last year, announced its findings recently in mid August 2021. It aimed to study the stress levels of Singaporeans, and one study was on Singapore youths mental health. One alarming find was this statistic: 50%, or half of the students locally, struggled with youth mental heath issues in Singapore.
Overall Impact on Singapore’s Population
An Institute of Mental Health (IMH) study found that, across the board, about 13% of the population experienced symptoms of depression or anxiety from May 2020 to June 2021.
Of interest, the CoMWT also highlighted two important groups of people — students like you and older adults — who were particularly strained by the pandemic in 2020. Singapore youth mental health issues is an extreme concern to parents and teachers alike.
[Find out how we can help with your Chemistry Tuition in Singapore]
Youths
More than half of the youth population, or 52%, reported that they struggled with mental health issues, and cited mental well-being was a challenge during the second half of 2020.
What are the main Singapore youth mental health issues? The top stress mentioned by youths was anxiety over the future (53%), stress over finances (41%), and worries about academic or work performance (39%).
The results were conveyed by the National Youth Council’s (NYC) polls, to shed light about Singapore youth mental health issues, and on the challenges and sentiments of Covid-19 experienced by youths in Singapore. The polls were conducted between April and Dec. 2020.
As such, the CoMWT said that these findings highlight the importance of identifying ways to support our youth through the pandemic. What can schools and parents and youths do to better support one another in this pandemic and critical climate we are in today?
One suggestion includes strengthening their ability to cope with anxiety and uncertainty, promoting help-seeking behaviours and peer support efforts, and providing assurances about education prospects and career support to relieve the stress over future and financial concerns.
A new Interagency Taskforce on Mental Health and Well-being will be established to help adults and youths alike to manage the crises.
What can you do to support yourself and your friends?
- Build Resilience
Resilience is the ability to recover from our experiences. Learning how to build metal toughness can help us cope with the ups and downs of life. - Look Back At Our Past Challenges
We build resilience through overcoming painful trials and disappointments. When we are down, we look back, and think about how our past actions and thoughts helped us through those difficult times. Resilience can be built as we recover our confidence to meet difficult problems. - Know Our Strengths
When faced with life’s challenges, anyone can fall if we do not have any resources to rely on. But if we know our strengths, we can rely on these to navigate through the problems. - Positive Attitude
Resilient people often carry positive energy around them. Everyone will face disappointment and unexpected turns in life. A positive mindset does not mean we sugarcoat everything. It means that we choose to give thanks for the good we see, no matter how small or insignificant it seems to be. - Community
Having the support of a community to cheer us on in our difficult journey affirm that we are not alone. Resilience is not built overnight nor alone. Let’s do it together!
Read Also:
Time planning for the O-level Chemistry Examination
