Coronavirus: Stress lifts as states ease lockdowns

The stress and loneliness associated with social distancing eased significantly in June as states relaxed restrictions.

The stress and loneliness associated with social distancing eased significantly in June as states relaxed restrictions, but Greater Melbourne’s renewed lockdown threatens to reverse Australians’ improved sense of wellbeing.

The seventh of the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ special surveys on the effects of the pandemic on households, conducted between June 24 and 29 before the full scale of the new Victorian coronavirus outbreak was apparent, showed the proportion of Australians feeling personal stress, anxiety or loneliness as a result of the pandemic was about half that of two months earlier.

The survey showed 24 per cent of respondents reported experiencing one or more sources of personal stress in June, compared to 43 per cent in April.

About one in 11 people said they were suffering from loneliness late last month compared to one in five in the previous comparable survey. The ABS said there was a “significant” fall in the number of people who reported feelings associated with anxiety and depression in June compared to April, and back to similar rates recorded in the 2017-18 National Health Survey.

But ABS head of household surveys Michelle Marquardt said the renewed lockdown in Victoria following a spike in cases may lead to a reversal of the positive trend in the latest survey. “Now that some parts of the country are either having to reinstate some restrictions or put a pause on easing them it will be important to understand what impact this is likely to have on mental health,” Ms Marquardt said.

The Victorian government locked down Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire for six weeks to contain a COVID-19 outbreak while other states reintroduced border controls or delayed plans to further ease restrictions to reduce the risk of a second wave of infections.

 

While an opening up of the economy and community last month led to a marked reduction in personal stressors such as loneliness or worry about maintaining a healthy lifestyle, the proportion of Australians worried about their financial position remained largely unchanged.

About 4 per cent said that over the previous four weeks they had experienced stress around the ability to get a job, the same proportion as in April.

The proportion of Australians 18 and over who had a job remained steady at 61 per cent throughout June, after reaching a low of 56 per cent in early April.

More peopled reported rental stress, at 4 per cent versus 3 per cent in the previous survey. Mortgage stress halved to 2 per cent in the two months to June.