Nearly half of Irish young people say their mental health has deteriorated in recent years

Nearly half of young Irish people have said that their mental health has deteriorated in recent years.

47 percent of people aged between 18 and 24 said that financial difficulties and money worries contributed to their poor mental health during the country's financial crisis. 50 percent of these have said they did not seek help or mental health support during this time. A new study conducted by SilverCloud Health has shown that debt and anxieties around money is negatively affecting the lives of young people in Ireland. The research, published on Wednesday, marks World Mental Health Day and aims to establish the link between a lack of stability and poor mental health. The study found that of those who said their mental health deteriorated due to financial worries, 28 percent had considered suicide. 37 percent said they had trouble sleeping, and 62 percent said they experienced general anxiety and stress due to money-related issues and debt. Dr Derek Richards, chief science officer at SilverCloud Health, welcomed World Mental Health Day's 2018 theme of 'young people',  but said that important work still needed to be done to support those struggling. He said:

"Among the many challenges faced by this demographic, many are leaving third level education with the burden of student loans, while trying to make the transition to working life. "Our survey strongly indicates that young people are concerned about financial difficulties and debt and in some cases this is having a real impact on their mental health and future outlook."

Yesterday's 2019 budget allocated an additional €84 million for mental health services in Ireland. This is an increase of nine percent.