Depression Rates Triple in Spain Post-Pandemic

Spain's Health Survey, a comprehensive check-up conducted every four years by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), has confirmed a serious issue that many specialists have been warning about for three years based on their daily experiences in clinics and hospitals: the mental health of citizens has significantly deteriorated since the social and personal upheaval triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.

The INE's health overview indicates that in the four-year period between the 2019 survey and the current one, completed with 2023 data, the percentage of Spaniards suffering from depressive disorders has tripled. The study shows that currently almost 15% of citizens (14.6%), nearly one in six, experienced this severe mental health issue in the two weeks prior to participating in the INE questionnaires, and more than half of them, specifically 8% of the population, were officially classified as having "a severe depressive disorder."

Behind the figures lies a tremendous decline in the emotional well-being of Spaniards in recent years. Compared to 2019, general depressive disorders have worsened by 3.7 points and severe ones by 5.5 points, meaning both have tripled on average. If we broaden the scope to include all Spaniards showing some form of depressive symptoms, we are talking about almost a third of the population, 29.8%, according to the Ministry of Health's press release on this work. This figure indicates that citizens with some level of depressive affectation have increased by 21% compared to four years ago and by 46.5% since 2014, during the heart of the last decade's major financial crisis.

The deterioration of Spaniards' psychological health occurs across all age groups but is particularly pronounced, especially in severe cases, among the younger population, according to INE data. The highest incidence of depressive disorders is found among those over 65, with general and severe pathologies affecting one in five, 19.5%. The next most affected are the middle-aged, covering most of the working life, with nearly 14% among various diagnoses of this pathology from 25 to 64 years. However, the most significant increase in the disease since 2019 is among young people aged 15 to 24. The incidence of less severe depression triples, rising from 1.3% to 4.5%, but severe pathology diagnoses increase from 1% to 5.9% in this age group over the four-year period, six times more.

The prevalence of this type of mental disorder is notably higher in women than in men, with a ten-point difference. 35.1% of women report experiencing some form of depressive symptoms compared to 24.4% of men. This means that Spanish women are affected by depression 44% more than men.