Since the impact of physical pain are often more noticeable than mental health problems, the latter is often overlooked or underestimated. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 1 in 5 adults in the US lives with a mental illness. While the health technology has mostly been focused on treating physical illnesses, considerable improvements are happening in terms of technological support aimed at mental health (Consumer Technology Association, 2020).
Technology has provided support by simply enabling anyone to send a text message to contact a crisis center (Whittle, 2020). There have also been apps which monitor user’s behavioral patterns and can send a signal when an unusual behavior occurs to prevent a crisis (Whittle, 2020). Technology has enabled connected devices and lead to a slowly growing acceptance and acknowledgement of mental health problems. Digital therapeutics decreases the perceived judgement for patients, making them more willing to share their health information (Consumer Technology Association, 2020). Software in health care apps is being standardized which will contribute to telemedicine and substantial improvements have been made in detecting PTSD as well as helping calm the symptoms and anxiety (Consumer Technology Association, 2020).
According to recent research, the effect of corona on mental health depends on people’s socio-economic context, age group and pre-existing issues (Whittle, 2020). Overall, however, mental health has never gotten as much attention and importance as during the current pandemic, especially due to confinement (Vial, 2020). Young people are the most affected and people who had mental health issues prior to the crisis are experiencing considerably more anxiety and loneliness, with suicide rates worryingly increasing (Whittle, 2020). Many of the supports for people with mental health issues (eg therapy, training courses, volunteering) were abruptly interrupted. Especially the lack of support usually provided by peers and communities is affecting the patients (Vial, 2020).
It has been found that VR among others can contribute to fighting mental illnesses as it can aid in diagnosing patients in their own scenario, detecting conditions such as ADHD, autism and schizophrenia (Whittle, 2020). It can also be used as a distraction technique to calm patients and reduce anxiety – known as the escapism treatment. Considering the shortage of qualified doctors and long waiting lists, technology could be a good support. Nevertheless, there are thousands (and growing) mental health apps available and yet there is no clear evidence on their effectiveness. The question is therefore whether these technological contributions may only be providing pseudo treatments which will in the long run worsen the situation…
Sources:
https://www.med-technews.com/features/the-effect-of-lockdown-on-mental-health-and-how-vr-can-help/
https://www.ces.tech/Articles/2020/Mindful-Technology-How-Tech-Is-Helping-with-Menta.aspx
Hey Annabelle,
I love the topic that you touch on in this post. As someone that is affected by mental health problems myself, I totally agree with the points that you are making in this post. Mental health becomes rapidly important, as more and more people suffer from it. The technological development and especially the emergence of social media has led to an entire generation becoming more depressed and suffering from mental health problems. However, as you mentioned this technological development can also lead to fight this emerging worldwide problem. It is vital for us to ensure that these tools are used correctly and not profit of people. The goal should be to help the patient and not make him use technological tools more to proft from the patient. If we can ensure that, I am confident that technology can significantly help mental health patients.