There is without a doubt that the current pandemic has impacted mental health, but how? Has quarantine driven people insane? As students come back to school this year, they seem to come back as a different person. Some students seem to be more introverted. Some may seem to become more anxious.  Perhaps some are even itching to reunite with friends.

The pandemic caused new regulations to be brought up. These new regulations caused many people to be forced to be isolated. Instead of spending time with friends, some find themselves with a great amount of free time. With this newfound free time, many picked up on new hobbies or shaping up their current skills. While the free time may have brought positive results it has also brought negative results. 

What type of negative outcomes are there? Well some may be evident in the behaviors of students. In some students, it is evident that covid-19 has caused much stress among people. 

In a conducted survey, it asked students, “since quarantine happened, have you felt more stress”. Out of the 16 respondents, 37.5%  of the people responded ‘Yes a little’ and 62.5% responded: “Yes, quite a bit”. The responses indicate that they have felt at least a greater number of stress since quarantine. 

Emotional stress can affect one’s mental health. They may feel anxiety in response to a stressor that occurs. Due to the quarantine, many people have felt more anxious than usual. 

In the same survey, 98.3% of the 16 respondents have said they felt more anxious since quarantine. Why have people felt more anxious? Anxiety is a response to stress with relationships.  Relationships are under stress because of quarantine. 

The coronavirus pandemic has a variety of regulations, from social distancing and quarantining, it has caused many to become more isolated from their peers, friends, and significant others. They may be unable to communicate with one another which may cause stress in relationships and friendships.

 Some may try to communicate with one another through the internet; however, some may eventually lose contact with one another. The loss of contact puts stress upon the relationship. 

Some people have had a change in their friend groups. Losing contact with some of their friends can cause a change in friend group which can cause stress. The stress may cause people to have their anxiety suddenly spike or feel more anxious. 

Not only anxiety, but some students may have had symptoms of depression. In the survey, about 53.8 % of the respondents have answered to have felt symptoms of depression or said their depression symptoms have gotten worse.

Depression affects adolescents. Quarantine has become one of the main reasons why stress among many students has increased. When stress occurs, it may trigger stress hormones such as cortisol. If it fails to shut off it may lead to depression. It may lead to students feeling symptoms of depression. 

If students feel stress, anxiety, or have depression, they can talk to someone they trust; friends, family, a trusted adult, or a guidance counselor. They can also use different stress management techniques. Stress management techniques may include yoga, meditation, or listening to music. There are countless numbers of techniques to help reduce stress. 

  To summarize, what is going on with mental health since quarantine? While quarantine may have been a positive to help keep people safe, it has also had some negative effects such as increasing the percentage of depression and anxious students.  Though some student’s mental health has worsened due to quarantine it does not always have to be.