No one has been untouched by the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Intense emotions including anxiety, anger, fear, frustration, grief, loneliness and sadness have become common since the COVID-19 pandemic reached Skagit County in March.Â
Mental health experts say those feelings were inevitable. Emotions are absolutely normal and expected during this time, Keri Waterland, director of the Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery that operates under the state s Healthcare Authority, told the Skagit Valley Herald. Whatever you are feeling right now is OK, and there is nothing wrong with you.
According to weekly U.S. Census Bureau data, the number of adults in the state reporting feelings of depression and anxiety is on the rise. Dreary weather and holiday stress only compound the challenges.Â
Courtesy Jo Arlow
Originally published on December 15, 2020 5:52 pm
It stands to reason that all the stress, anxiety and isolation of the pandemic could lead more people to take their own lives. But newly obtained data for Oregon and Washington show this is one bad thing that 2020 has not delivered.
Public health agencies and suicide prevention groups have been keeping an eye out since spring for a possible rise in suicides. Based on preliminary data, Oregon has
not seen an increase in the number of suicides for the first nine months of 2020 when compared to the same time period in 2019, wrote Oregon Health Authority communications officer Aria Seligmann in an email.
Public health agencies watching for rise in suicides during pandemic, but not seeing it
It stands to reason that all the stress, anxiety and isolation of the pandemic could lead more people to take their own lives. But newly obtained data for Oregon and Washington show this is one bad thing that 2020 has not delivered.
Public health agencies and suicide prevention groups have been keeping an eye out since spring for a possible rise in suicides. Based on preliminary data, Oregon has not seen an increase in the number of suicides for the first nine months of 2020 when compared to the same time period in 2019, wrote Oregon Health Authority communications officer Aria Seligmann in an email.