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I was gripped by anxiety during lockdown – now talking about mental health is helping me through the crisis

A fifth of vulnerable people have considered self-harm in the lockdown and the worsening of mental health issues is something we should be rallying around to prevent, says Alex Holmes

Tuesday 28 July 2020 17:28 BST
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An information sign in an empty street tells people to stay at home
An information sign in an empty street tells people to stay at home

I couldn’t open the marmalade jar and I had a meltdown. It was the first of many meltdowns during this intense period of lockdown – as well as being one of the more melodramatic moments of my life thus far.

There had been tensions that week both inside and outside of the home. Boris Johnson had recently announced that the nation was to go into lockdown. We were to stay indoors. At first, I was unperturbed. There were five of us living under the same roof at the time and I had to adjust to having my whole family home. But I was unsure about what was to come. I had three panic attacks at work in 2018 and have been in and out of therapy for the last two years.

“I have been on lockdown since 2019. All of you just got here!” I exclaimed, pouring wine with a shaking hand. We laughed. Laughs covered our concerns. Concerns about the impact of the crisis on mental health. Almost as if I prophesied, I saw it unfold before me. A fifth of vulnerable people have considered self-harm in the lockdown, and the worsening of mental health issues is something we should be rallying around to prevent.

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