Coronavirus: Lockdown anxiety easing but homeschooling pressures 'increasing stress'
As many as 19 million adults in the UK report high levels of anxiety as a study analyses the pandemic's impact on mental health.
Monday 15 June 2020 14:50, UK
Anxiety levels among Britons appear to be reducing compared with at the start of lockdown - but married people and those in civil partnerships have reported the highest rise in feeling anxious.
Around 19 million people are estimated to still be suffering from high anxiety with there being "understandable concern" about people's wellbeing, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
When lockdown started on 23 March, there was a "marked" increase in anxiety.
Between 20-30 March, nearly half (49.6%) of people reported high anxiety - this figure reduced to 37% between 30 April and 10 May.
But the ONS suggested those who are married or in a civil partnership may be particularly worried due to balancing demands such as homeschooling and work commitments.
ONS statistician, Dawn Snape, said: "Our figures show that the equivalent of 19 million adults in Great Britain report high levels of anxiety.
"One particularly striking finding is that 39% of people who are married or in a civil partnership reported high levels of anxiety. This compares with 19% pre-pandemic.
"It may in part be because of the challenges of homeschooling alongside work and other responsibilities.
"Another marked change is in those aged 65 years or older.
"Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, we consistently saw lower anxiety ratings in those aged 65 years and older, but now we are seeing the highest levels of anxiety amongst this group in lockdown."
The ONS report said people who "often or always" felt lonely were almost five times more likely to report high anxiety than those who "never" feel lonely.
People aged 75 and older were twice as likely as adults aged 16 to 24 to report high levels of anxiety.
Around one in five of those who reported high levels of anxiety said they were finding working from home difficult.
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Between 3 April and 10 May, women had higher anxiety scores than men - average anxiety scores for women were 4.7 out of 10 compared with 3.9 out of 10 for men.
People with disabilities were also more likely to report a higher anxiety score, as were people who reported that they did not feel "safe" in their own home.
The ONS report states: "When a shock event occurs, such as the impact of the coronavirus, wellbeing is temporarily impacted, but people then quickly adapt so that wellbeing partially bounces back, though not necessarily to the same level as it was before the shock.
"During lockdown new measures have been put into place, which may have also helped to alleviate high levels of anxiety."