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Background: Recent studies report that LGBTQ + people have experienced high levels of mental health problems during COVID-19-related social distancing. Given the well-established association between social isolation and mental health, the main aim of the current study was to investigate differences in mental health and (perceived) social isolation and social support in LGBTQ + individuals compared to heterosexual, cisgender people and to explore whether the hypothesized higher mental health burden in LGBTQ + individuals is (partly) mediated by (perceived) social isolation or social support.
Methods: N = 531 participants indicating belonging to the LGBTQ + community and N = 1826 not identifying as LGBTQ + participated in a cross-sectional online survey during the initial COVID-19-related lockdown in Germany. Standardized questionnaires were used to assess depression, anxiety, suicidality, loneliness and social support. Further, perceived social isolation and face-to-face communication during the lockdown were assessed.
Results: LGBTQ + people had higher levels of depression, anxiety and suicidal thought, were lonelier and experienced less social support than non-LGBTQ + identifying individuals. Mediation analysis showed that the higher levels of mental health burden in LGBTQ + people were (partly) mediated by reduced social connectedness. Further face-to-face contact positively affected mental health by reducing feelings of loneliness.
Conclusion: Given the high impact of loneliness on mental health, governmental actions should be taken to promote social connectedness particularly among LGBTQ + identifying individuals to ensure that the COVID- 19 pandemic does not exacerbate the health inequalities that already exist between LGBTQ+-identifying and heterosexual, cisgender people.
Background: The measures taken to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have led to significant changes in people’s daily lives. This paper examines changes in substance use during the first lockdown (March–July 2020) and investigates mental health burdens in substance users with increased consumption of alcohol, nicotine or tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in Germany compared to users with unchanged or reduced consumption. Method: In a cross-sectional online survey, 2369 people were asked about their mental health and their substance use during the first lockdown in Germany. Results: Of the participants, 28.5% increased their alcohol use, 28.8% their use of tobacco products, and 20.6% their use of THC-containing products during the pandemic. The groups with increased alcohol, nicotine, and THC use during the first lockdown reported more depressive symptoms and anxiety. Individuals who reported increased consumption of alcohol or nicotine were also more likely to experience loneliness and have suicidal thoughts and were more often stressed due to social distancing. Conclusion: Alcohol, nicotine and THC increased in a subgroup of consumers who reported to have more mental health problems compared to individuals who did not increase their consumption. This increased substance use could, therefore, be understood as a dysfunctional strategy to cope with negative emotions during the lockdown.
