As of mid-July, 32 million Americans were considered unemployed. North Carolina alone is nearing 1.2 million unemployment insurance claims as federal support remains uncertain. While the economic effects of nationwide job loss can be measured, the mental health effects are more difficult to quantify.

Wake Forest counseling professor Seth Hayden, who studies the connection between career and mental health says a change in work status causes stress and anxiety that is difficult to navigate even in the best of economic times.

Seth Hayden

“When someone loses a job, whether it has been on the horizon or if it is sudden, there is a sense of loss,” says Hayden. “They may feel anxious, angry, confused or sad. Work is an interconnected dimension of the human experience that affects our perception of ourselves. The expiration of CARES Act funding means many families are about to experience even more dire economic hardship and anxiety as rent and bills come due.”

When layoffs and job losses happen there is a domino effect that can elicit a sense of loss to the point of experiencing grief. For those with families, there is even more at stake when relationships are strained by economic insecurity which can impact access to basic necessities for parents and children, Hayden says.