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. 2021 May 22;18(11):5542.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18115542.

Mental Health and the Symptoms of PTSD in People with Depression and Anxiety Disorders during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Paulina Beata Golińska  1 , Mariusz Cieślak  2 , Olimpia Hubert  3 , Mariola Bidzan  1
Affiliations

Mental Health and the Symptoms of PTSD in People with Depression and Anxiety Disorders during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Paulina Beata Golińska et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the severity of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms related to the COVID-19 pandemic in people with no diagnosis of mental illness, as well as in people who were diagnosed with depression or anxiety. Moreover, this study aimed to investigate the interplay between PTSD symptoms and self-assessed mental health associated with well-being. The 210 participants were divided into 3 groups: mentally healthy, participants with diagnosed depression, and participants with anxiety disorders. To evaluate the subjective well-being of the participants, the Polish adaptation of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF) was applied. The Impact Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) was used to measure the severity of PTSD symptoms. At least a moderate worsening of PTSD symptoms was observed in participants of all groups. The results were as follows: healthy participants M = 37.35 (SD = 18.46); participants with depression M = 36.05 (SD = 18.02); participants with anxiety M = 44.52 (SD = 18.08). The participants diagnosed with depression showed the lowest level of mental well-being M = 41.58 (SD = 15.02). Conclusion: People diagnosed with depression had both the lowest level of well-being and the lowest severity of symptoms specific to PTSD. In all three groups, lower emotional well-being was linked to greater PTSD symptoms.

Keywords: COVID-19; PTSD; anxiety; depression; well-being.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The intensity of symptoms in individuals diagnosed with depression or anxiety disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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