For Mental Health Awareness Week 2018 we focused on stress. This report looks at the prevalence of stress in the UK and its implications. It also focuses on what we can do to manage and reduce stress and our recommendations for the government in creating a stress-free UK.
While stress isn’t a mental health problem in itself, it often leads to depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide. It can also lead to physical health problems such as cardiovascular disease and joint and muscle problems.
How many of us are stressed?
Information on how many people in the UK population as a whole are affected by stress is very limited. However, our new survey found that over the past year, almost three quarters (74%) of people have at some point felt so stressed that they felt overwhelmed or unable to cope. The survey, commissioned by the Mental Health Foundation and undertaken by YouGov, polled 4,169 adults in the UK in 2018.
To explore these figures in more depth, download the full report.