More than 25 million Britons experienced high anxiety in the days after lockdown measures were announced – and women are suffering more than men, a study by the Office for National Statistics said.
While both sexes have noted ‘substantially elevated’ levels of anxiety during the pandemic when compared to last year, women are finding life in lockdown harder than men, reporting higher levels of anxiety.
Anxiety levels are rated between 0 and 10, where 0 is ‘not at all anxious’ and 10 is ‘completely anxious’. Anxiety ratings between 0-1 are classed by the ONS as very low, 2-3 low, 4-5 medium and 6-10 high.
Among women the average anxiety rating was 5.77 out of 10 in late March, while for men it was 4.57.
The study was conducted between March 20 and 30 – which follows the closure of cafes, pubs, bars and restaurants.
Levels of anxiety in the UK are far higher than usual as the lockdown remains in place, figures released by ONS reveal
Levels of happiness were also recorded to have dropped as people are asked to stay home to fight the coronavirus outbreak
The most common worries among both men and women related to work and finances, with those fearing they would be unable to save money reporting anxiety 33 per cent higher on average.
Women however reported greater levels of anxiety compared to men, with their average rating 24 per cent higher between April 3 and 13.
One possible explanation is that more women are economically inactive compared to men – 24.3 per cent compared to 15.8 per cent, respectively. In the UK, 21.8 per cent of women with dependent children are economically inactive compared to 5.2 per cent of men with dependent children.
Women are also more likely to be in lower-paid jobs, be paid below the National Minimum Wage and work part-time, the ONS said.
Anecdotal evidence would suggest women are also shouldering more of the burden when it comes to home schooling.
The study also found 84.8 per cent of men and women were revealed to have been very worried or somewhat worried about the impact coronavirus could have on their lives.
An astounding 49.6 per cent of individuals surveyed between March 20 and March 30 rated their anxiety between levels six and ten, the highest on the measure.
The average for the period of lockdown was 5.2, far higher than the 3.0 average recorded in the final months of 2019.
Overall, average anxiety ratings in the early lockdown period – from March 20 to 30 – were 5.18 and remained elevated over the periods between March 27 and April 6, and between April 3 and 13.
These were the highest levels of anxiety recorded by the ONS since it began collecting data on personal wellbeing in 2011.
In a separate set of questions, the ONS also asked people for their biggest concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.
It found that approximately 8.5 million people are most concerned about their wellbeing, 6.2 million about work and 5.3 million about the impact on their finances.
Emergency measures triggered by the government have seen millions working from home and on furlough, with holidays cancelled and an exit date from the current stasis yet to be determined.
The ONS survey revealed anxiety levels had slipped down to 4.2 for the period April 9 to April 20, as Britons adjusted to the new normal, but remained higher than expected.
Levels of happiness were also on the slide with 20.7 per cent of Britons saying they had low levels between March 20 and March 30, before this dropped to 16.6 per cent between April 3 and April 13.
The levels, however, represent a significant rise from the last three months of 2019, where an average of 8.4 per cent of people said they had a low level of happiness.
When asked whether they felt things in their lives were worthwhile, 7.7 per cent of respondents rated their feelings as ‘low’ between March 20 and March 30, and 6.3 per cent rated them as low in the following time frame.
For October to December last year, the figure was just 3.8 per cent.
Average score in first days of lockdown was 5.2, far higher than 3.0 average recorded in the last three months of 2019
It comes as medics warn the UK could face an avalanche of mental health cases as the countries 42-day lockdown continues.
Dr Sandro Gelea, from Boston University, warned measures enacted to stop the spread of the virus would ‘undoubtedly’ impact mental health and well-being.
‘These consequences are of sufficient importance that immediate efforts focused on prevention and direct intervention are needed to address the impact of the outbreak on individual and population level mental health.
‘The worldwide Covid-19 pandemic, and efforts to contain it, represent a unique threat, and we must recognise the pandemic that will quickly follow it – that of mental and behavioural illness – and implement the steps needed to mitigate it.’
The lockdown has also forced many mental health services online and over the phone, as face-to-face meetings remain restricted under social distancing measures.