The COVID-19 “national health emergency” may have ended in May, but the impact of needless lockdowns are still being felt by Americans who have seen historic jumps in chronic illness and mental illness in the months since, according to the American Psychological Association. 

The Epoch Times reported the APA conducted a study that found the biggest surge in chronic health issues among those between the ages of 34 and 44, jumping from 48 percent in 2019 to 58 percent in 2023. This group also experienced its biggest jump in mental health issues, which went from 31 percent in 2019 to 45 percent in 2023. 

“We cannot ignore the fact that we have been significantly changed by the loss of more than one million Americans, as well as this shift in our workplaces, school systems, and culture at large,” Arthur C. Evans, APA’s chief executive, said in a statement obtained by the paper. “To move toward post-traumatic growth, we must first identify and understand the psychological wounds that remain.”

Researchers said Americans are facing “collective trauma.”

APA polled more than 3,185 U.S. adults about their physical and mental well-being. Adults between 18 and 34 years old still had the highest rate of mental illness, at 50 percent, the study found.

TRENDPOST: The Trends Journal has long reported on the impact that COVID-19 lockdowns have had on the physical and mental health of millions around the world, and this generation will never fully recover. (See “IN THE WAR OVER TAKING COVID JABS, THE NAYS NOW PREVAIL BY A HUGE MARGIN” 17 Oct 2023, “CDC ACCUSED OF REPEATEDLY MISREPRESENTING MASK RESEARCH EVEN WHEN MASKED GROUP HAD HIGHER COVID INFECTION RATE” 10 Oct 2023, “NEW STUDY SHOWS HEALTH RISKS THAT COME WITH WEARING COVID-19 FACE MASKS” 23 May 2023, “STUDY PROVES: FACE MASKS INCREASES RISK OF STILLBIRTHS, TESTICULAR DYSFUNCTION” 25 Apr 2023, and “BLOWING UP IN THEIR FACES: MASKS DON’T WORK IN PREVENTING COVID SPREAD” 14 Feb 2023.)

The survey revealed that more people are reporting chronic health conditions such as high blood pressure, anxiety, and depression than before the pandemic and financial issues increased for adults 35 to 44. Money-induced stress rose from 65 percent to 77 percent since the lockdowns.

Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, was not involved in the APA’s poll but said, “The rise in chronic illness and mental illness among adults aged 35 to 44 is clearly due to the stress and anxiety provoked by lockdowns and mandates, fear of the virus and the rampant divisiveness.”

He continued: “On top of this, a sedentary lifestyle, less exercise, poor diet, more smoking and alcohol, and increased stress during the pandemic led to more [incidences of] high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes and cancer, as well as diabetes, lung disease, and depression.”