45% of teens suffer from chronic stress in times of pandemic: Study Rajkot News – Times of India

Rajkot: If the past has been anything for almost a year or more, it was really tough for mental health. With the lockdown, the fear and financial inefficiencies of COVID-19 have put people of all ages in distress and left them mentally stressed. Chronic stress comes from a long-term unresolved condition and also triggers a variety of diseases.
A survey conducted by the Department of Psychology, Saurashtra University (SU) on people across different age groups found 45 per cent of adolescents to be victims of ‘chronic stress’, the highest among all age groups. A total of 1,080 people of all ages were surveyed by psychologists.
NR Patel and Kartavi Bhatt, two students from SU’s psychology department, conducted the survey under the guidance of HOD Yogesh Jogsan. The two surveyed 243 children aged 10 to 14 years, 152 adolescents aged 14 to 17 years, 234 youths aged 18 to 45, 270 middle-aged people aged 46 to 60 years and 180 people above 60 years of age.
In their survey, the researchers found 45 percent of adolescents, 36 percent of children and 36 percent of youth to be victims of chronic stress.
Of the many reasons why teenagers suffer from stress, the most important is their age related to the fear of parents controlling them during the pandemic. Restrictions on outdoor activities, under constant surveillance and closure of schools and colleges caused irritation and panic among them due to lack of socialization.
“Chronic stress is a physiological condition that also brings on certain diseases. When stressful situations arise frequently and it prolongs the normal stress which is converted into chronic stress,” said Jogson. He added that if this chronic If stress is not addressed properly, it invites certain diseases like diabetes, heart attack and other physical and psychological problems in the long run.
According to psychologists, stress is good to a certain extent which keeps people progressing in career and life. This is called positive stress. However, when it crosses the desired threshold, stress reduces the ability of a person to think and then it becomes a negative factor with dire consequences.