Current events, COVID-19 exacerbate mental health concerns as calls for help spike

The current events in the nation’s capital seem to have compounded the stress and anxiety many Americans already feel because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Mylien Duong is a practicing clinical psychologist and a senior research scientist at Committee for Children. She’s seeing big demand for help.

“Tons and tons of calls I’m getting,” Dr. Duong said. “The level of calls I get from people seeking treatment is more than I’ve ever seen in my entire career.”

Over the past 10 months, mental health experts have seen more people experiencing anxiety and depression. Some mental health providers are inundated with patients seeking treatment.

For some people, the social isolation and the stresses of living with COVID-19 have been a huge factor.

And now, seeing what’s happening in the news at the U.S. Capitol and at our state capital is exacerbating the stress and uncertainty some people are feeling.

“School is disrupted," Chris Wolff said. "Work is disrupted. It seems like our government is disrupted. There’s a lot to worry about."

“Just the nervousness of what’s going to happen next,” said Cat Nawak.

“Whenever change happens, whether it’s good change or bad change, that causes anxiety--especially when that change relates to really fundamental and deeply held beliefs about how we think about the world,” said Dr. Duong.

She specializes in preventing and treating depression and anxiety and explains what signs to watch for if you or someone you love may be in trouble.

“We’re all feeing very anxious right now. All that is uncertain. Some of that is to be expected,” Dr. Duong said. “But if you’re starting to notice that its really intervening with your life, like its you’re starting to worry so much during the day, you’re having trouble sleeping, or you’re seeing conflict and you’re moody, you’re irritable, you can’t see your family, those are all signs that it might be worth it that you might need to seek out professional help.”

If you need to intervene to help a friend, Dr. Duong suggests this, “You can say 'look I’m really worried about you. Maybe you need to go talk to somebody who's more qualified than I am to talk you through this stuff. "

If you can't get help from a licensed therapist, Duong said check with your church, calling a crisis hotline, or looking into support groups and employee assistance programs in the workplace.

Washington State has a website with all mental health resources available. You’ll find that link here.