Utah No. 3 in U.S. for mental health issues during coronavirus pandemic

If someone you know is having mental health issues during the coronavirus pandemic and its associated disruptions, they’re not along. A new study from PSYDPrograms.com found that 23.5 percent of Utah’s adults have suffered from incidents of mental health issues since the pandemic began — third-highest in the nation. The national average is 18.6 percent. Only Idaho and Oregon rank higher than Utah.

The leading incidents involve anxiety, depression, substance abuse and suicidal thoughts, the study found.

Utah ranks No. 40 among states with 7.2 percent struggling with pandemic-related substance abuse and ranks No. 1 with 6 percent reporting suicidal thoughts.

West Virginia ranks No. 4 overall with 22.9 percent suffering mental health incidents and Washington is No. 5 with 22.8 percent.  New Jersey ranks has the fewest reported incidents, with 16.2 percent.