A shopper watchdog has printed that the collection of antidepressants offered between January and September 2022 larger through 70% in comparison to the similar duration ultimate yr, Russian media company TASS experiences.
Chestny Znak, a virtual labelling gadget in Russia reported the fad, remarking that unemployment from firms leaving the Russian marketplace and normal nervousness led to through Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are two primary components for the rise.
In a press liberate it says: “In the nine months of this year, Russians bought 8.4 million packs of antidepressants, which is 48% more than in the same period last year. The amount spent by Russian residents on these drugs in 2022 turned out to be 70% more than last year and reached 5 billion rubles (€81 million).”
It noted that people living in cities like Moscow and St Petersburg resorted more to antidepressant prescriptions to deal with stress and anxiety. In Moscow, 13.1 packages per 1,000 people were bought per month, and in St. Petersburg 11.2 packages per 1,000 people.
The total amount spent in the first half of 2022 is 3.4 billion rubles (€55 million). In general, in Russia, the average bill for the purchase of such drugs is 596 rubles (€9.70).
Vasilina Kotova, a 22-year-old IT Student, says she started taking prescriptions shortly after President Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“For two months I didn’t leave my house. I had no energy to do anything. Not even energy, but the desire to do anything, as if you stop seeing any point in it at all.”
The increase in usage has been confirmed by psychologists.
“Antidepressants are released only on prescription. So the increase in sales of antidepressants reflects that the number of patients taking antidepressants has actually increased. I think that this is largely due to the anxiety that has arisen in connection with recent events,” says Oleg Levin, a Russian psychologist.
But polls have now not recorded any main alternate in Russian sentiment since February this yr. According to the Levada Center, a brief surge of inflammation was once best noticeable after the announcement of mobilisation, however through October, virtually two-thirds of respondents assessed their temper as standard or positive.
