Surge in cases of depression, OCD due to Corona pandemic

Bengaluru: With the pandemic induced lockdown and many working from home, the state capital has witnessed a surge in depression and OCD cases among the working professionals from the IT sector.

Ace Suhas Hospital, Bengaluru has seen a 20% increase in anxiety and depression cases and one of the major reasons behind it is isolation.

Dr Jagadish Hiremath CEO Ace Suhas Hospital observed, "We have seen an increase in the number of patients coming in anxiety and depression by about 20% and majority of them are working professionals from the IT sector. The primary observation sheds light on the reason which is prolonged lockdown , no social interaction and confinement within the house for a longer period of time. Also the paranoia around Covid is triggering depression and anxiety."

Aster CMI hospital said there has been a spike in the number of depression and OCD cases.

"There has been an increase of 20-30% in the number of depression cases and approximately 20% increase in the OCD patients," said Dr. Girishchandra, Sr. Consultant, Psychiatry, Aster CMI Hospital.

Dr Bhargavaraman RP, psychiatrist, with Regal hospital had witnessed that not only professionals employed with the IT sector but also from other sectors like arts, photography and real estate have undergone depression.

"There have been more presentations related to people suffering depression of varying severity. Most of it is related to personal loss, economic hardship, loss of employment, reduced earnings and social isolation along with other life stress. People with preexisting OCD have experienced worsening of their disease. Though more people have reached out for help, it's very difficult to say whether there has been an actual increase in numbers because of the pandemic, with limited periods of observation," he observed.

It is not just in Bengaluru, places like Dharwad also witnessing a similar trend.

Dr Mahesh Mahadeviah, chief of de-addiction department, Department of Mental Health Sciences said that there have been cases of OCD due to the pandemic.

Talking about the stress among kids, Instagram influencer and blogger, Shweta Tanwar Mukherjee opined that initially parents should stand as an example before their children to keep the little ones at bay from stress and anxiety. "Kids generally bounce back, if during the pandemic they have received emotional support from parents in their lives.Calm parents encourage calm children. Not talking about the pandemic can actually make kids worry more. Acknowledge their concerns, validate their feelings and provide comfort and reassurance. I think as parents it's important to stay calm because kids will take their cues from us," she said.

Dr. Puja Kapoor, Pediatric neurologist & Co- Founder of Continua Kids remarked that children staying at home due to lockdown spend more time before television and internet that can lead to psycho-social problems, like lower self-esteem .

"Excess use of the internet can lead to internet addiction disorder. Some can also experience cyberbullying which can affect their mental health. Moreover, spending more time inside the house makes children vulnerable to effects of indoor pollution which can affect their brain development leading to limited development of cognitive abilities." she said.

She suggested that children who are separated from their parents due to their service at the hospitals or being infected due to Covid are more susceptible to psychological problems.