The mental health of Spanish families is deteriorating, as reflected in the 12th Barometer of Families in Spain, a work released in the context of World Depression Day, January 13. In almost one in four families, one of its members has needed psychological help in the last year
After the pandemic and the economic decline, Spanish families have begun to feel an impact from a psychological point of view, which has ended up affecting mental health.
This is how he collects it XII Barometer of Families in Spaindriven by the The Family Watch Foundation and conducted by the research company GAD3which reflects how the mental health of Spaniards has been weakened in the last year.
Barometer results
The results of the barometer, taken from an online survey of 1002 households across the country, indicate that mental health in Spanish households is in decline.
More than half of those interviewed acknowledge that they themselves or someone close to them has suffered concern (77%), irritability (61%), sleep disturbance (57%) or anguish (54%) during 2022.
In this same line, the 25% claims that they, or someone close to them, has consumed one for the first time anxiolytic during the last year.
What worries Spanish families the most?
According to the barometer, Spanish families show concern about economic difficultiesthe feeling of loneliness and in general, the uncertainty.
The feeling of loneliness is an aspect that continues to rise, since almost the 39% of the respondents declares having experienced it in the last year.
This uncertainty combined with instability also affects future prospects, such as when starting a family, since 80% of adults states that there are currently more difficulties than in previous generations.
Impact on the mental health of young people
As for young people, Spanish families consider that the impact on mental health is due to the internet.
Among the main reasons for the deterioration of mental health in this group, they point to the influence of Social Networks (53%), the increase of bullying in schools (43%) and the low self-esteem (39%), among others.
On the other hand, the barometer indicates the impact that the use of the internet and social networks has on education and the lives of families.
So, almost one 60% of the interviewees considers that it is the families themselves who must participate, as the main social actor, for reduce the impact of social networks to young people
Greater visibility of mental health
The results of the study reflect that the suicide rate has increased in both young people and adults in recent years.
However, the taboo around mental health has been disappearing. These topics are being talked about more and more freely and the information it has is of high quality.
In addition, it has gradually become normalized to go to a mental health professional when faced with a problem.
In this way, the 23.6% of Spanish families have requested psychological help when they needed it, a figure that has also been increased in 2022.
For Maria José Olesti, general director of The Family Watch Foundation: “The significant deterioration of mental health and the increase in the number of psychological problems show that families need stability, to be helped and strengthened and therefore to distance them from uncertainty and ideological or political vagaries” .
“Until this happens, we will not be able to reverse the terrible demographic figures we have in our country”, he concludes.