Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study
Background Around one in ten people who contract COVID-19 report persistent symptoms or ‘long COVID’. Impaired mental health and well-being is commonly reported, including anxiety, depression and reduced quality of life. However, there is limited in-depth research exploring why mental health and wel...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2022-03-01
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| Series: | BJPsych Open |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2056472422000382/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1811156912762257408 |
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| author | Alexandra Burton Henry Aughterson Daisy Fancourt Keir E. J. Philip |
| author_facet | Alexandra Burton Henry Aughterson Daisy Fancourt Keir E. J. Philip |
| author_sort | Alexandra Burton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background
Around one in ten people who contract COVID-19 report persistent symptoms or ‘long COVID’. Impaired mental health and well-being is commonly reported, including anxiety, depression and reduced quality of life. However, there is limited in-depth research exploring why mental health and well-being are affected in people experiencing long COVID.
Aims
To explore factors affecting mental health and well-being from the perspective of people with long COVID.
Method
Semi-structured qualitative interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Twenty-one people with long COVID participated in the study. Participants were eligible if they self-reported a positive swab test/antibody test or one or more commonly reported COVID-19 symptoms at illness onset. and experiences of one or more long COVID symptoms ≥3 weeks following illness onset.
Results
Five themes were identified across participant accounts regarding factors affecting mental health and well-being, including symptoms causing severe disruption to daily life, lack of service and treatment options, uncertainty of illness trajectories, experiences of care and understanding from others and changes to identity.
Conclusions
People with long COVID experience a range of factors that negatively affect their mental health and well-being. Providing patient-centred health services that integrate rapidly evolving research in this area is important, as are peer support groups and supported approaches to self-management.
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:58:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5e6c19e991cf42ceafec34378e06924a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2056-4724 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:58:00Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BJPsych Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-5e6c19e991cf42ceafec34378e06924a2023-03-09T12:29:19ZengCambridge University PressBJPsych Open2056-47242022-03-01810.1192/bjo.2022.38Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative studyAlexandra Burton0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4433-3902Henry Aughterson1Daisy Fancourt2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6952-334XKeir E. J. Philip3Department of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, UKDepartment of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, UKDepartment of Behavioural Science and Health, University College London, UKNational Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, UK; and NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, UKBackground Around one in ten people who contract COVID-19 report persistent symptoms or ‘long COVID’. Impaired mental health and well-being is commonly reported, including anxiety, depression and reduced quality of life. However, there is limited in-depth research exploring why mental health and well-being are affected in people experiencing long COVID. Aims To explore factors affecting mental health and well-being from the perspective of people with long COVID. Method Semi-structured qualitative interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Twenty-one people with long COVID participated in the study. Participants were eligible if they self-reported a positive swab test/antibody test or one or more commonly reported COVID-19 symptoms at illness onset. and experiences of one or more long COVID symptoms ≥3 weeks following illness onset. Results Five themes were identified across participant accounts regarding factors affecting mental health and well-being, including symptoms causing severe disruption to daily life, lack of service and treatment options, uncertainty of illness trajectories, experiences of care and understanding from others and changes to identity. Conclusions People with long COVID experience a range of factors that negatively affect their mental health and well-being. Providing patient-centred health services that integrate rapidly evolving research in this area is important, as are peer support groups and supported approaches to self-management. https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2056472422000382/type/journal_articleLong COVIDqualitative researchmental healthCOVID-19phenomenology |
| spellingShingle | Alexandra Burton Henry Aughterson Daisy Fancourt Keir E. J. Philip Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study BJPsych Open Long COVID qualitative research mental health COVID-19 phenomenology |
| title | Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study |
| title_full | Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study |
| title_fullStr | Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study |
| title_short | Factors shaping the mental health and well-being of people experiencing persistent COVID-19 symptoms or ‘long COVID’: qualitative study |
| title_sort | factors shaping the mental health and well being of people experiencing persistent covid 19 symptoms or long covid qualitative study |
| topic | Long COVID qualitative research mental health COVID-19 phenomenology |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2056472422000382/type/journal_article |
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