Mental health and well-being during the second wave of COVID-19: longitudinal analyses of the UK COVID-19 Mental Health and Wellbeing study (UK COVID-MH)

Wetherall, Karen; Cleare, Seonaid; McClelland, Heather; Melson, Ambrose J.; Niedzwiedz, Claire L.; O’Carroll, Ronan E.; O’Connor, Daryl B.; Platt, Steve; Scowcroft, Elizabeth; Watson, Billy; Zortea, Tiago; Ferguson, Eamonn; Robb, Kathryn A.; O’Connor, Rory C.

Abstract

Background
Waves 1 to 3 (March 2020 to May 2020) of the UK COVID-19 Mental Health & Wellbeing study suggested an improvement in some indicators of mental health across the first 6 weeks of the UK lockdown, however, suicidal ideation increased.

Aims
To report the prevalence of mental health and wellbeing of adults in the UK from March/April 2020 to February 2021.

Method
Quota sampling was employed at wave 1 (March/April 2020), and online surveys were conducted at 7 time-points. Primary analyses cover wave 4 (May/June 2020), wave 5 (July/August 2020), wave 6 (October 2020), and wave 7 (February 2021), including a period of increased restrictions in the UK. Mental health indicators were suicidal ideation, self-harm, suicide attempt, depression, anxiety, defeat, entrapment, loneliness and wellbeing.
Results
2691 (87.5% of wave 1) participated in at least one survey between waves 4 to 7. Depressive symptoms and loneliness increased from October 2020 to February 2021. Defeat and entrapment increased from July/August 2020 to October 2020 and remained elevated in February 2021. Wellbeing decreased from July/August 2020 to October 2020. Anxiety symptoms and suicidal ideation did not change. Young adults, women, those socially disadvantaged, or with a mental health condition reported worse mental health.

Conclusions
The mental health and wellbeing of the UK population deteriorated from July/August 2020 to October 2020 and February 2021, a period coinciding with the second wave of COVID-19. Suicidal thoughts did not decrease significantly suggesting a need for continued vigilance as we recover from the pandemic.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 4, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Jun 1, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022-07
• Deposit Date: Apr 11, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 12, 2022
• Journal: BJPsych Open
• Electronic ISSN: 2056-4724
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 4
• Article Number: e103
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1192/bjo.2022.58
• Keywords: COVID-19; mental health; general population; depression; suicidal ideation
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/7755654
• Publisher URL: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-open/article/mental-health-and-wellbeing-during-the-second-wave-of-covid19-longitudinal-analyses-of-the-uk-covid19-mental-health-and-wellbeing-study-uk-covidmh/3208C00F1E5850B339408F05A590E13F#article