in people with long COVID appear to be higher than in the general population, just as they are among people with other chronic illnesses.may be contributing to a person's mental state in a variety of ways, she said. The person may have experienced prolonged isolation or they may be dealing with physical limitations directly related to their illness, such as being easily fatigued and unable to function normally. Such limitations may have even led them to lose their jobs.
"That can affect you in your day-to-day existence," Dickerman said. "If a person has low energy, they may want to stay in bed all day. But doing that might make you feel even more depressed."ideation is present in about half the long COVID patients he sees at his clinic. "I'm very specific in the questions I ask," he said, which include whether the thoughts began after getting COVID or if they happened before.
But some studies suggest COVID may affect the brain directly. This raises the question, Anderson said, that "if it's getting into the brain, is it affecting the parts of the brain responsible for mood? We just don't have those answers." People with additional stressors from social determinants of health – such as discrimination, lower incomes, limited access to health care and other resources – may experience even higher rates of depression, Dickerman said.in general, if you have fewer social supports, all of these things will negatively impact you," she said.