Mental Health Is A Matter of Public Health, Too
The pandemic has increased stress and anxiety around the world. Experts weigh in on how social ties and local leadership can help.
At London’s Loughborough Junction railway station in June, a Samaritans’ poster urges people in emotional distress to seek help.
Photographer: Richard Baker/In Pictures via Getty Images
Feb. 6 marked the anniversary of the first known death attributed to Covid-19 in the U.S., and the days that follow will offer reminders that it’s been 12 months since cities started locking down.
The mood has shifted considerably since last March: Rates of infection, hospitalization and deaths are falling in many countries; vaccines are getting approved and into arms; and experts suggest there’s reason to be hopeful about the summer. But there’s no vaccine that can erase the toll of the social isolation, grief and anxiety that the past year has brought.