More than one in five (22%) adults in Flanders reported that they had serious psychological problems in the past year that have had an impact on their daily life, the results of the Public Mental Health Monitor 2023 show.
About 22% of adults met the criteria for suffering a mental disorder in the past year, meaning that it disrupted their psychological balance for a long time and harmed various areas of life, such as work, social relationships, finances and health, among others.
The research shows that 9% of adults in Flanders had depression in 2023, 12% had an anxiety disorder (such as generalised anxiety, social anxiety or panic attacks), 11% had an alcohol disorder (a mental disorder caused by alcohol addiction) and 12% had a so-called externalising disorder (disorders related to behavioural and emotional problems, such as aggressive behaviour, self-injuries and eating disorders).
"The increase in externalising disorders is worrying. They emerge early in childhood and teenage years and will significantly impact society," Margot Cloet, Managing Director of umbrella organisation Zorgnet-Icuro representing Flemish healthcare organisations, said in a press release.
Waiting 10 years to seek help
For half of the people, the disorders emerged when they were younger than 18 years old, a quarter were even younger than 13 years old, she said. "Efforts for the prevention of mental disorders should therefore primarily focus on children and young people, and start from primary school age."
Depression also occurs at an increasingly younger age: for half of people, it develops around the age of 24 and for a quarter, it even develops before the age of 16. Results from 20 years ago show that depression usually develops around 38.
Anxiety disorders usually also develop around the age of 24, but that is slightly later compared to the past. Mental disorders due to excessive alcohol use and alcohol addiction, however, begin around the age of 18.
Strikingly, Flemish people wait an average of 10 years to seek help for their psychological disorder – a figure that must "absolutely" be brought down, said Cloet. "We are already seeing improvement thanks to the reimbursement of primary psychological care, but we must ensure that we direct more people to help."
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The reason why people wait so long is usually because they want to resolve problems themselves (78%), do not want treatment (78%) or are concerned about the costs of treatment (73%). Many (68%) said they do not know where to find treatment or who to turn to.
Despite the increased openness about mental well-being, more people than 20 years ago cited stigmatisation as a reason for not seeking help (earlier). Of those who did take the step to search for help, six in ten could start treatment immediately.
"Although that is not necessarily the most suitable care. For example, someone may be prescribed antidepressants by their GP, but then have to wait another year for the first consultation with a psychologist," said Cloet. The 40% of people who cannot start treatment immediately have to wait an average of three months for the first treatment. Almost one in ten has to wait longer than six months.
According to Zorgnet-Icuro, this is the first major survey into the mental well-being of adult people in Flanders, based on scientific data instead of assumptions. "It is a baseline measurement that we want to repeat regularly from now on. We hope to gain a good overview of developments. However, we are already seeing some clear trends compared to 20 years ago."
