According to new public health research, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on the psychological distress of Quebec men.
A survey found that young, single men are having a particularly tough time and that English speakers are experiencing more mental health problems than French speakers.
Mark Walford, 58, has been struggling with his mental health for years. Before COVID-19 hit, he’d made huge strides in his recovery. When the pandemic forced him to start working from home, his depression came back to the surface.
“All of a sudden it kind of brought back some of the memories and flashbacks to all those months and years where I stayed at home and isolated myself out of my own will, because of the depression,” said Walford, who works at Community Perspective on Mental Health.
Walford is far from the only one to have their mental health damaged by the pandemic.
New public health research looking specifically into the mental health of Quebec men found a disturbing trend.
“Men always have difficulties asking for help, we know that. It seems this is worse with the virus,” said Gilles Tremblay, a professor at Laval University and one of the researchers on the study.
Earlier this year, researchers surveyed 1,500 Montreal men. The results found that this year one in five are feeling elevated psychological distress. That number was nearly double what it was in 2018.
“I’m not surprised at all, to be honest,” said Victoria Kuczynski, a counsellor at Friends For Mental Health, a West Island community organization.
She said she’s seen a sharp increase in men reaching out of late.
“We have three times more men asking for help since the beginning of this year versus last year,” she said.
The public health survey found younger men between 18 and 34 and single men are among the hardest hit.
“They are a lot more isolated, or they don’t have that social contact that many other people can have in a family setting,” said Kuczynski.
Men with lower incomes were also among the most distressed, according to the survey, while men 65 and over were among those in the best shape mentally.
The research also found that men who speak English as their first language are more likely to be in mental distress than those who speak French as their first language.
Tremblay said more research would be needed to figure out why, but according to Kuczynski, a lack of English mental health services could be one reason.
“Asking for somebody who speaks English is a lot harder to find just right off the bat. That decreases the amount of services just in sheer numbers that the men can receive,” she said.
Asking for help was tough for Walford. Once he reached out, however, he was happy he did.
“Things will get better and can get better,” he said.
If you’re struggling you can call 811, or reach out to a local organization like Friends for Mental Health.
Walford is holding an online event about mental health on May 14.
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