Aware that stress, anxiety and depression are increasingly affecting people in France, despite everything, the French consider themselves ill-informed about these conditions, a new study reveals. A worrying observation, reinforced by the fact that psychological suffering is now seen as a taboo in the eyes of a large part of the population, who find it difficult to talk about it.
The mental health of the population is deteriorating around the world. A fact that is emphasized by a large number of studies that have never contradicted each other until now. Global pandemic, war in Ukraine and climate emergency only amplify a bleak and uncertain climate that is already well entrenched in everyday life. An observation that the French men and women do not deny, on the contrary, as evidenced by the seventh volume of the Observatory of French Care Paths conducted by Santéclair, in collaboration with Harris Interactive*.
Nearly nine in ten (86%) say mental disorders and suffering are affecting more and more people, and more than eight in ten (81%) say they have been affected at some point in their lives. % currently. These are mainly manifested by sleep disorders (53% now suffer from them), a feeling of depression and/or a lack of energy (43%), but also by anxiety attacks (36%) and dark thoughts (30%). The health crisis is also no stranger to this scourge: nearly a third of respondents reporting mental health problems (31%) say they emerged during or after the pandemic.
A difficult topic to discuss
Despite the steadily increasing disease in recent years, a large proportion of French men and women (59%) say they feel ill-informed about psychological suffering. And when two-thirds of respondents say they are afraid of these conditions, more than four in ten say it’s still difficult to talk about them today. However, almost seven in ten respondents (69%) say they know who to turn to in case of such suffering. Paradoxically, just over a third of respondents (39%) say they have consulted a health professional for their mental health.
The fear of consulting
According to the survey, there are many barriers to consultation. It is mainly a matter of modesty, 29% of those involved indicate that they have difficulty accepting help, and 24% report that they are concerned about seeing a doctor, in general. The financial brake remains, up to 19%. Only the first step seems to cost the French men and women, as those who have taken the consultation phase do not regret it. More than eight in ten respondents (85%) confirm that the professional has been competent, be it the attending physician (83%), the psychologist (87%), or the psychiatrist (84%).
Remote consultation: a solution?
Given some of the obstacles mentioned by the French population, teleconsultation could be a possible solution in the treatment of mental disorders. More than a fifth of people currently taking a psychological care course (21%) have already used it and 66% of those who haven’t could use it. Among the benefits cited by those who teleconsult or plan to do so include the absence of travel (30%) and time savings (27%). But it is also synonymous with the lack of direct contact with the professional (55%) for those who consult physics and do not intend to continue their journey remotely.
* This survey was conducted online from November 17 and 23, 2021, with a sample of 2,003 people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over. Quota method and adjustment applied to the following variables: gender, age, socio-professional category and region of the interviewee.
(ETX Daily Up)