Analysts: NH Has the Second-Lowest Levels of COVID-19 Anxiety and Depression

A team of analysts has found that Granite Staters are reporting the second-lowest levels of pandemic-related anxiety and depression in the country.

This is mainly due to a turnaround in 2021, according to a report distributed on Tuesday by a public relations specialist at QuoteWizard by LendingTree, LLC.

QuoteWizard analysts evaluated mental health data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which measured anxiety and depression in residents of each state from April 2020 to August of this year.

Then they compared the data over time and across state, gender, age, educational and ethnic lines, according to the methodology described in the report.

The report states:

Anxiety and depression levels have remained low in both North and South Dakota throughout the pandemic. New Hampshire, meanwhile, has the second-lowest levels of both anxiety and depression, but that is mainly due to a large decrease throughout 2021.

The numbers show how New Hampshire compares to the rest of the country.

In August, 22 percent of New Hampshire respondents said they were experiencing anxiety. That was a 32 percent decrease since January of this year.

South Dakota had 22 percent of people report they were experiencing anxiety in August. They were down 19 percent since January and were the state with the least anxiety.

As a whole, 27 percent of Americans reported feeling anxiety in August. That was down 24 percent since January.

Just under 1/5 of New Hampshire respondents - 19 percent - reported that they felt depressed in August.

That was down 25 percent since January.

South Dakota had 16 percent of respondents report depression, which was down 21 percent since January.

According to the report, 22 percent of Americans reported feeling depressed in August, which was down 23 percent since January.

Analysts broke down anxiety and depression by demographics.

They found that people of different ages, ethnicities and education levels experienced the pandemic differently.

Women reported having higher levels of anxiety than men.

Older and more educated Americans currently have some of the lowest levels of anxiety or depression, according to the report.

"When we looked at race and ethnicity, our analysts found that asian communities have experienced the largest decline in anxiety or depression. Black, white and hispanic communities report roughly the same levels of anxiety or depression and have experienced the same decline over the last year," the authors wrote.

In June, Gov. Chris Sununu announced a $100 million investment in mental health in New Hampshire.

Sununu announced during a press briefing that state officials would invest up to $100 million in state and federal funds to go toward mobile crisis teams, 60 new transitional housing beds and 30 new emergency beds to be placed throughout the state.

Other new programs, such as a new forensic hospital, were still in the planning stages.

New private providers will be allowed to come into the state and new rules will be created for licensing, treatment and discharge, Sununu said.

Massachusetts was one of two states that saw a decline in anxiety and depression during 2020, according to the report.

Analysts say the state's 5.8 percent decline in anxiety and depression since the beginning of the pandemic could be the result of access to mental health care for residents, quality of care and health insurance programs.

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website. Resource information is provided for free as well as a chat message service. To speak directly to a professional, call 1-800-273-8255. You are not alone and help is available. Every life is important.