Department of Public Health, NSU .
PBH /101
Mental Health: A dire situation during Covid-19 lockdown
Submitted to
Dr. Afrin Ahmed Clara
MBBS, MPH, MPHM
Senior lecturer
Department of Public Health
Submitted By:
Wasif Mohammad Khan
ID: 1831566630
Sec: 14
An assignment submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement
for the final examination
NORTH SOUTH UNIVERSITY
Introduction
Covid-19 has a significant detrimental effect on the mental health and psychological well-being of the
people.in public mental health team, the main psychological impact to date is elevated rates of stress or
anxiety. Staying in quarantine has effected many people's usual activities or livelihood. So therefore level
of loneliness and depression are expected to rise. The sudden and near constant Stream of news reports
about an outbreak can cause anyone to feel worried. During times of stress and crisis it is common for
children to seek more attachment and be more demanding on parents. Older adults, especially in isolation
and those with cognitive decline, may become more anxious, angry, stressed, agitated and withdraw
during the pandemic or while in quarantine.
I have chosen mental health because Covid-19 has changed our lifestyles and we cannot lead our lives
like we used to, like going out with friends and to our workplaces, and instead we have to spend all our
time at home which has hampered many people's mental health more than the disease did.
Mental health and psychosocial support
In any pandemic, it is common for individuals to feel stressed and worried. Common responses of people
affected might include fear of ill and dying, losing livelihoods, quarantine, separated from loved ones and
caregivers. Any emergency is stressful, but some specific stressors like risk of being infected and
infecting others, common symptoms of other infection can be mistaken for COVID-19, worried for
children, risk of physical and mental health of special population like older adults, disabled people are
particular to COVID-19 affect people.
Data Analysis
To collect sufficient data about the reason behind mental health during COVID -19 . I hosted a survey
questioning various aspects on my topic. The data collected through my survey helped me to find out the
things what I was looking for and to draw conclusions about my research topic. The questions were
completed by a group of 20 people. The data collected is presented and analyzed in the following part.
Question-1: Do you feel worried about getting affected?
First of all, I asked people whether they feel worried about getting affected by COVID-19 or not. 61.1%
of people said that they are extremely worried about getting affected COVID-19. 27.8% people do not
worried about it and 11.1% people are not worried about getting affected COVID-19.
Question-2: Do you feel worried that your family members would
get infected by covid-19 affected?
The data collection clearly shows that they are extremely worried about his/her family members. 83.3%
of people think that any mental health disorder or depression is the reason for COVID-19. 11.1% of
people think not at all worried that they are family members get infected by COVID-19 affected .
Question-3: Are you worried about the current situation of
Bangladesh?
The data collection shows, 12 people think the current situation of Bangladesh is very bad. There are also
5 people who think it's a normal situation in Bangladesh. But there are only 3 people who think this
situation is very good.
Question- 4: Can you sleep during this pandemic situation/ in this
quarantine?
At this stage, I asked people whether they could sleep in this pandemic situation. 38.9% of people are
connected with other problems like a family issue, financial problem, job loss, etc. And 27.8% of people
having an insomnia problem . They can fall asleep without too much trouble at bedtime, but experience
many brief arousals throughout the night, this is known as sleep fragmentation. It's often caused by major
stressors, such as the coronavirus pandemic. 22.2% of people thing insomnia often runs in families but is
also closely linked to mental health disorders, like anxiety. 11.1% of people think of disturbing dreaming.
Dreaming is a characterization of rapid eye movement sleep, as well as a faster pulse rate and breathing,
which happens at intervals during the night.
Question- 5: Feeling afraid as if something God-awful might
happen?
The data above shows us that the majority of people (55.6%) feels afraid as if something awful might
happen. 22.2% of people felt afraid for several days and 22.2% of people thinks that nothing is gone
happen
Question- 6: Feeling down depressed?
The data collection shows 50% of people were depressed for several days. 16.7% of people are depressed
due to home quarantine. States such as Lombardy in Italy, where population is already heavily affected,
issues of service access and continuity for people with developing or existing mental health conditions are
also now a major concern, along with the mental health and well-being of frontline workers. 22.2% of
surveyed people are not depressed and 11.1% of people are depressed more than half days in COVID-19.
Question- 7: What major changes have covid-19 brought in your
lifestyle?
In this part, I asked people which major changes have COVID-19 brought in your lifestyle. 38.9% of
people think that they are more dependent on social media. They chat with their friends, family members.
Some people are working at home. 38.9% of people told that they are facing mental health issues.
Remaining 22.2% of people said that they are looking to have a positive outlook towards the post-covid-
19 future
Question-8 How are you being harmed by not being able to do
tuition during lockdown?
From the above chart, we can see that 41.2% of people told it does no harm to do tuition during the
lockdown. And another 35.3% of people told that they were having a mental health problem during the
lockdown. And 11.8% of people have both problems like mentally & financially. 11.8% of people have
just financial problems during the lockdown.
Question-9 What do you feel when you think about covid-19? ( I will
show 5 short answer)
1. I feel very afraid when I think about covid-19
2. I feel that Covid-19 has changed our daily lifestyles and people should definitely look at the positive
sides of this pandemic and pray to Allah for our betterment. We should cherish every small thing in life
and become a better human being once this ends In Shaa Allah
3. I fear about my male family members who go out every day and as we have 5 little kids so um very
much afraid about my siblings
4. We need to work together for the betterment of our country and we need to is the fifth in our home.
5. I feel down and things get quite messy
Recommendation
Maintain proper hygiene: Wash your hands frequently at least for 20 sec. You have to clear your shoes
after coming from outside with disinfectant. And have to wash cloths and other things properly.
Get enough sleep: Go to bed and get up at the same times each day. Stick close to your typical schedule,
even if you're staying at home.
Avoid tobacco, alcohol and drugs: If you smoke tobacco or if you vape, you're already at higher risk of
lung disease. Because COVID-19 affects the lungs, your risk increases even more.
Share one feeling : Talking about and opening up about your feelings is no easy feat. Sharing feelings
also reduces stress and anxiety, allowing us to feel connected and supported by those we are sharing with.
Stay busy: A distraction can get you away from the cycle of negative thoughts that feed anxiety and
depression. Enjoy hobbies that you can do at home, identify a new project or clean out that closet you
promised you'd get to.
Do something for others: Find purpose in helping the people around you. For example, donate food,
medicine, money etc.
Conclusion
My findings show there are high prevalence of mental health problems during the COVID-19 outbreak.
These findings implicated the government need pay more attention to mental health among general
population while combating with COVID-19. For building up our mental health we can also talk with our
friends & family. Praying brings peace in our mind. So, we should pray regularly for finding peace and it
will have us to have a good mental health. We can also watch and listen to different type of mental health
programs. We can also participate in mental health live programs. In this way we can have a peaceful
mind and proper mental health. So that we can fight against this and overcome it without being depressed.
