1 in 3 Belgians dissatisfied with life due to COVID-19 restrictions: Study

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) - One in three Belgians are dissatisfied with their lives in general and a quarter of them suffer from anxiety, a new survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic revealed.

"The proportion of people dissatisfied with their life, in general, has increased sharply by the end of the year, rising from 14% at the start of October to 34% at the end of December 2021," Belgian public health institute Sciensano said in a statement on Thursday.

On the request of Sciensano, over 22,000 people were interviewed on Dec. 13-23 to gauge the increase in unhappiness due to restrictions on public life and safety measures that the Belgian government introduced during this period to stem the fourth wave of the pandemic.

The survey revealed that young people aged between 18 and 29 were less satisfied than the average, with 37% of them unsatisfied with their lives.

It also produced findings on the pandemic's impact on mental health, with 28% of respondents reporting that they had suffered solitude, while anxiety and depression were reported by 24% and 21%, respectively.