Mental health analysis during COVID-19: A comparison before and during the pandemic

COVID-19 has acted as a roadblock to mental health services across the globe, and the isolation because of the lockdowns has caused various depressive problems. Through this paper, we aim to determine the effect of COVID-19 on the public's mental health. Data obtained from some specific subreddits helps us identify a pool of users whose mental condition was affected by the pandemic. Using transformer-based classification models on the selected users' Reddit activity, we found 6.4% of our user base to be free from any mental issues before the pandemic. Further experiments show that most of the users posted about their struggles due to the pandemic during the March-May period.

I. Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought an unprecedented amount of stress on public health systems across the globe. Because of the worldwide medical emergency, severe public health measures are being taken to reduce the virus's spread. With lockdowns and curfews being a familiar sight for a better part of the year, the pandemic has left the population isolated, worried about their financial situation or jobs, and, more importantly, fretted about the health of close ones.