Anxiety processes related to the coronavirus crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed us, altered our way of life, presenting a situation of stress and anxiety that has affected the whole world to a greater or lesser extent.

And it is that society is not prepared to live a pandemic that entails a drastic change in daily life: restrictions to leave to the street, loss of contact with other people, isolation, alterations or even loss of job or death of a person Dear.

All these events have had an impact on the mental health of society, appearing more psychological problems as is the case excessive increase in anxiety, increasing at the beginning of the pandemic and continuing, in many cases, during months.

Next we will see what they are the most common anxiety disorders that can arise in a crisis like the coronavirus, and we will point out some measures to deal with them.

• Related article: "Types of Anxiety Disorders and their characteristics"

What do we understand by anxiety?

Throughout the history of Psychology, an attempt has been made to define the concept of anxiety, differentiating it from other terms such as "anguish" or "fear"

. Anxiety would be explained as an emotional state generated by a diffuse combination of disturbing emotions that does not have a source that generates it and it does not occur in the face of a current threat but rather in the face of the possibility of a future danger that is often unpredictable.

The author Peter Lang proposed a triple response system that appeared in anxiety states: the subjective-cognitive system related to internal experience, the physiological-somatic system, linked to the activation of the autonomic nervous system, and the motor-behavioral response system encompasses all the observable responses in the conduct.

Within the anxiety category there are different types, although they all have in common that have a tendency to irrational behavior, an excessive and persistent intensity, generate discomfort and are disturbing for the person. In reference to the prevalence of this type of disorder, a high percentage of them have been observed in society since always, being considered on many occasions the most common psychological disorder and occurring especially in the population female.

• You may be interested in: "What is anxiety: how to recognize it and what to do"

Types of anxiety

As we have pointed out before, the anxiety group is made up of different disorders that, despite showing similar characteristics, also present differences and defining aspects of each one.

Currently, the fifth edition of the Diagnostic Manual of the American Psychological Association (DSM 5) classifies within the category of disorders of anxiety: the characteristic panic disorder for fear of having a panic attack or anxiety (sudden onset of fear or discomfort accompanied by autonomic activation symptoms), agoraphobia (fear of panic attack symptoms in a situation where escaping or receiving help is difficult), specific phobia (it is the fear of a specific stimulus or situation) and social anxiety disorder appearance of anxiety before a social situation or performance in public.

The manual also describes Generalized Anxiety Disorder; In this case, the fear or anxiety is not specific to a stimulus or situation but is characterized by excessive concern about different aspects of daily life. Finally, it also describes more typical types of anxiety in childhood, such as separation anxiety disorder and selective mutism.

To be considered as such, Every disorder has to affect the functionality of the person, that is, alter some aspect of her life or cause discomfort. It has been observed that the most prevalent anxiety disorder in society is specific phobia and in the clinical setting panic disorder with agoraphobia, this being one of the most disabling.

Similarly, DSM 5 has created another diagnostic category for disorders related to trauma and adaptive disorders; here we find the post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that appears in reaction to a traumatic event, affecting functionality and producing discomfort or adjustment disorder with less discomfort than in PTSD but still greater than expected, and dysfunctional.

• Related article: "Generalized Anxiety Disorder: symptoms, causes and treatment"

Anxiety and stress in the pandemic

The consequences of the COVID-19 crisis have been devastating not only in terms of physical health, but also in the field of mental and social health. The situations we have experienced have been extreme, without being able to leave home, being isolated, and There are cases of people with previous psychopathologies living alone and not being able to relate to other

In addition, the economic crisis unleashed has generated effects in the workplace and in power acquisitive, experiences capable of completely disrupting the habits and future plans of the persons. In this sense, fear and the constant tension generated by job insecurity plays an important role.

All these sudden changes have affected the population to a greater or lesser extent, since their lives have been modified regardless of the economic situation, age... The virus can affect everyone, and for this reason the entire population is in risk.

Some of the factors most influenced by anxiety triggered by the pandemic are:

• The need to stay isolated at home and the unwanted loneliness that this generates, making relationships with others impossible people (we must not forget that humans are social beings, and this means that we need contact with others).
• The economy: there have been many who have seen their job in jeopardy by reducing their working hours or even being fired.
• The fear of loss of physical health.
• The fear of being the culprit of contagion to a loved one.
• Grief due to illness or death of loved ones.
• The constant dissemination of sensational and catastrophic news about the pandemic.

In general, the mental health situation in world society has worsened, affecting people who live most unfavorable socioeconomic situations, those that already showed previous mental health problems, and those that have suffered directly the virus. It has been seen that 1 in 5 of those affected have faced a diagnosis of anxiety disorder, depression or insomnia for the first time and they are twice as likely to suffer from these disorders compared to the general population.

The situation has been so extreme and unexpected that the prevalence of suicidal thoughts has even increased by between 8% and 10%, especially in young adult subjects.

In Spain, in the specific case of anxiety problems, of the people who have been interviewed, 15.8% have reported having suffered an anxiety attack, affecting the daily life of 66.7% of these subjects and harming the female population to a greater extent.

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