Lifeline hotline calls increased significantly

The volunteers manning Lifeline’s crisis hotline have noticed an interesting trend — an increase in first-time callers who say they’ve never felt the need to use the service before.

Some are timid and unsure about whether they should be calling the crisis line, others apologetic; heavy with the knowledge that many others are also suffering right now.

That more people are reaching out to mental health services a year and a half into a pandemic that has upturned our lives, forced people out of work, and left people physically isolated from friends and family isn’t exactly a surprise.

As Sydney prepares to enter its ninth week in lockdown, the mental health organisation is preparing to mark its own milestone: its busiest month since it was founded almost 60 years ago.

The volunteers who answer the calls, known as crisis supporters, say this because the lockdown has exacerbated people’s existing issues — such as financial stress or family problems — and amplified feelings of loneliness and isolation.

Pandemic a tipping point

Overwhelmingly the people who work on the frontlines of the mental health crisis say it is usually not just COVID-19 that has led a person to seek help, but a culmination of factors that have worsened since the pandemic.

This could be someone who has a strained relationship with their families forced to spend more time with them, the removal of socialising as a coping mechanism for people who were previously managing to maintain their mental health, or financial stress from lack of work.

A watershed year

It’s been a record-breaking month for mental health services. On Thursday, Lifeline recorded 3,505 calls in one day — the highest daily number in the organisation’s 57-year history. It was fourth time this month the record had been broken.

More generally, the number of calls is 40 per cent higher than it was two years ago. Where pre-pandemic Lifeline would expect an average of 2,400 calls a day, they are now regularly hovering around 3,400. The calls are also typically longer, which indicates higher levels of distress.

Mental health organisation Beyond Blue has also experienced a dramatic spike in requests for support since the beginning of the Sydney lockdown. Since the stay-at-home orders were introduced this time, demand for the organisation’s services has increased by 29 per cent — almost double the usual 14 per cent increase seen during past lockdowns.

With lockdowns in place across large parts of the eastern seaboard, health authorities are acutely aware of the mental health impact.

Dr Grant Blashki, the lead clinical adviser at Beyond Blue, describes the current situation as a “triple whammy” for people already struggling, referring to concerns about work and finances, the virus itself, and the vaccine.

As a result, since the beginning of the pandemic, leaders have pushed to ensure mental health support is part of the pandemic response and the national conversation.