Global Health

Learning from the Pain of the Pandemic

July 14, 2021  • Aspen Ideas to Go

As many of us know personally, the coronavirus pandemic has taken a toll on mental health. As lockdowns were enacted, loneliness, isolation, and depression increased. Concerns of loved ones dying and fear of contracting the virus affected our well-being. Since April of 2020, about 40 percent of US adults have reported symptoms of depression and anxiety. In 2019, that figure was just 11 percent, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Arthur Brooks, a Harvard business professor and behavioral social scientist, says it’s possible to turn post traumatic stress from pandemic into post traumatic growth. He shares how to emerge from the pandemic happier, stronger, and more resilient.

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