It is no secret to anyone that after the pandemic, citizens had to learn to live with various disorders and which still remain. One of them is anxiety or depression that affects eight out of ten Peruvians, according to Mercedes Pizarro, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health (Minsa).
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Already in July of this year, the Social Health Security (EsSalud) diagnosed 182,399 cases of people with anxiety, identifying that half of them suffer from a mixed condition of anxiety and depression.
Among the factors is “the issue of violence, citizen insecurity, unemployment and even traffic congestion, all of this problem generates concern and this concern is what generates anxiety and depression,” explains Pizarro, turning these diseases into a serious health crisis. public health in the country.
AFFECTED YOUNG PEOPLE
The spokesperson stressed that young people between 15 and 29 years old are the most affected, with a higher prevalence in women. He also mentioned that risk factors for mental health have intensified in recent years, particularly affecting youth.
“Anxiety is expressed with palpitations, sweating, lack of sleep, skin problems, fear of going outside, While in a depression your mood changes, before you went out with friends and now you don’t want to go out, you lose meaning in life, there are situations that worry you,” he indicated.
He indicated that the lack of medical resources has created a significant barrier to accessing mental health services, which are already saturated. “There are no longer appointments, because there are too many people,” he indicated.
In the country there are 294 psychiatrists currently and access to treatment is limited.
