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James Donaldson on Mental Health – Black adults with long COVID report higher levels of hopelessness and suicidal thoughts ? new research
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Black adults living with long COVID pointed to challenges with their physical health – rather than their mental health – when asked to describe their long-COVID symptoms. That is one key finding from our new study, published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.
When we examined the data further, however, we found that those living with long COVID in the U.S. had significantly more anxiety, depression, hopelessness, psychosis and suicidal thoughts than those without long COVID.
In other words, while participants clearly explained how long COVID impaired their physical health, they were less likely to attribute their recent mental health struggles to any issues stemming from their experiences of long COVID.
For the study, we asked nearly 500 Black adults in the U.S. to respond to a series of psychological questionnaires measuring various mental health outcomes in the spring of 2022. All participants, regardless of their long-COVID status, provided responses to these survey questions.
Next, we asked study participants to describe their long-COVID symptoms by using their own words to type short phrases or sentences. When analyzing their written responses, we found that participants most often pointed to physical or cognitive health conditions such as chest pain, troubled breathing, prolonged coughing, headaches, memory loss, impaired vision or smell, and sharp bodily pains.
This mismatch between how individuals described their long-COVID symptoms versus what they reported in the survey highlights the importance of collecting multiple forms of data – particularly when studying complex topics such as long COVID among marginalized populations.
We used qualitative and quantitative analysis techniques to identify points of overlap and divergence across the two data sources.
These approaches align with our work as suicide prevention and preventive medicine researchers, where we study topics at the intersection of race, mental health and physical health promotion.
One might anticipate that the cumulative impact of these disparate experiences would lead researchers, clinicians and government officials to prioritize the study of long COVID among vulnerable populations.
This, unfortunately, has not been the case. Black Americans’ mental and physical health experiences have gone largely understudied within existing long-COVID research. Getting a long-COVID diagnosis or help for the condition has been especially challenging for people of color.
Yet much of this work does not account for differences that may emerge either within or across race groups. Amid the rapidly evolving research on long COVID, several scholars are working to understand both the development and progression of long COVID in various communities across the globe.
#James Donaldson notes: Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes. Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use. Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.#http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle Find out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundation website www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson’s latest book, #CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy
We analyzed surveys from only one point in time and would need to collect multiple surveys over an extended amount of time before being able to determine whether long COVID causes negative mental health outcomes, or vice versa.
As a result, the findings from our study should be understood as correlational, meaning that while there is a statistically relevant relationship between these variables, we cannot rule out the potential influence of other external factors that may also affect Black adults’ mental health during the pandemic. More research is needed to understand how long COVID is linked to psychological outcomes and mental health over time.
While the U.S. COVID-19 public health emergency ended in May 2023, the mental and physical health needs of those living with long COVID are ongoing. We, therefore, plan to continue examining how long COVID is affecting people across different age, gender, economic and other important demographic groups in order to respond to the urgent need for evidence-based research and treatment options.
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James Donaldson is a Washington State University graduate (’79). After an outstanding basketball career with WSU, he went on to play professional basketball in the NBA with the Seattle Supersonics, San Diego/L.A. Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, and Utah Jazz. He also played for several teams in the European Leagues in Spain, Italy, and Greece, and he toured with The Harlem Globetrotters to wrap up his career. James was an NBA All-Star in 1988 while playing center for the Dallas Mavericks. In 2006, James was inducted into the Pac-10 Sports Hall of Fame and also the Washington State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2010, James was elected as a board member for the NBA Retired Players Association.
James frequently conducts speaking engagements (motivational, inspirational, educational) for organizations, schools, and youth groups.
In 2010, James was the recipient of the NBA Legends of Basketball ABC Award, awarded for outstanding contributions in Athletics–Business–Community.
He believes in being a role model for success and professionalism to the scores of young people to whom he devotes so much of his time. He currently serves on several boards and committees and is a member of many organizations.
James believes in developing relationships that create a “Win-Win” environment for everyone involved, and in being the best he can be!
For more information about James Donaldson or to request he speak at your event, contact him at:
James Donaldson is the author of “Standing Above The Crowd” and “Celebrating Your Gift of Life” and founder of the Your Gift of Life Foundation which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, especially pertaining to our school aged children and men.
If you’re interested in having James come and speak to your group of young adults, business entrepreneurs, aspiring political and community leaders, and athletic teams, please contact him at [email protected] and or leave a personal message for him at 1-800-745-3161. Keep up with him and read about how he is reaching out and making a difference in the lives of so many around the world at www.yourgiftoflife.org
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