In France, 13 million people present with a mental disorder each year and 53% of French people say they have “suffered mentally” over the last 12 months. Figures that are chilling, but which force us to face reality: the mental health of the French is no longer in good shape.
Digital “isolates us more”
While Mental Health has been declared a “Great National Cause” this year, a specialist in anxiety disorders is sounding the alarm.
“Never has our society seemed so connected… and yet never has it seemed so psychologically fragile,” confirms Christian Richomme, psychoanalyst, author and therapist in Paris. “In my office, as in international studies, the signs are clear: we face increasing loneliness, emotional fatigue and certain burnout at work, accompanied by fear of the future and anxiety-provoking hyperconnection.”
Digital technology, supposed to bring us together, sometimes isolates us more; the cult of performance fuels permanent stress; economic and ecological uncertainty “creates widespread anxiety among all generations“, he continues.
Result ?
- 53% of French people say they have experienced “an episode of psychological suffering“during the last 12 months;
- For anxiety states, the prevalence among adults between 18 and 85 years old is 12.5% (HAD-A score); it is three times higher among women (18.2%) than among men (6.4%) in 2021;
- In 2021, 12.5% of the adult population experienced a characterized depressive episode (over the last 12 months).
And the youngest are not spared. A quarter of young people aged 15 to 29 say they suffer from “depressive symptoms“, according to a survey carried out by the Montaigne Institute, the Mutualité française and the Terramindi Institute.
“Anxiety disorders are exploding, depression is setting in earlier, professional burnout is now affecting young professionals, and adolescence is experiencing alarming peaks in anxiety and self-depreciation,” assures Christian Richomme.
However, trivializing these signals – or ignoring them – would amount to allowing them to spread.a silent malaise that weakens our families, our couples, our businesses and our collective future”, continues the expert.
Taking care of your mental health must therefore no longer be an option: it is a national emergency.
Mental health in danger: which areas are priorities?
For Christian Richomme, the levers of action are plural:
- Recognize mental disorders as real illnesses;
- Provide simpler access to psychological and psychiatric care;
- Support prevention at school and in businesses;
- Break the shame that still surrounds anxiety, depression, addictions or phobias.
Mental health is not a luxury: it constitutes the basis of a balanced and united society.
“Recognizing mental suffering means recognizing the dignity of each person and giving everyone the opportunity to rebuild themselves. On this World Day, let us remember: taking care of the mind is not a sign of weakness, it is an act of collective courage,” concludes the therapist.