Gesellschaft: Psychische Gesundheit: Wie sehr belastet uns die Dauerkrise?

The ongoing crisis is taking a heavy toll on mental health in Germany, according to experts and recent surveys. Since 2020, a clear downward trend has been observed in the mental well-being of Germans, particularly affecting young women. Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, director of the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim, confirms that this deterioration is due to a succession of crises, including the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

The RKI (Robert Koch Institute) reports a rising trend in depressive and anxiety symptoms among the adult population since 2020, with 22% of adults experiencing depressive symptoms in 2024. Young women are especially at risk, with higher rates of depressive and anxiety symptoms. The pandemic and the war have exacerbated these issues, with 28% of adults rating their mental well-being as "rather poor" in 2024.

Mental health issues can manifest in various ways, such as depression, loss of interest, exhaustion, and concentration problems. For anxiety, the key indicators include persistent worry and difficulty in calming down. The RKI's Caroline Cohrdes notes that the mental health of Germans has worsened since the pandemic, and this trend is mirrored in hospital and psychotherapeutic practices, where diagnoses of depressive disorders have increased.

The worsening mental health has significant implications for society, contributing to early retirements and long-term illnesses, causing substantial economic damage. Moreover, it may weaken social cohesion, leading to social withdrawal and conflicts in families and neighborhoods. To tackle this issue, Meyer-Lindenberg advocates for improving health literacy, emphasizing that Germans lack knowledge about mental illnesses and preventive measures.

Cohrdes suggests increasing media literacy, particularly regarding the abundance of information on social media, to help individuals discern reliable sources from misinformation. While external stressors like crises are often blamed for depression, experts like Ulrich Hegerl, president of the German Depression Help Foundation, argue that depression is a distinct disorder with strong genetic and acquired predispositions. Thus, they deny the existence of a "depression epidemic" solely caused by crises.