'It's so important to talk' - lockdown causes isolation among most vulnerable Scots

The Covid-19 pandemic is having a “devastating” impact on the health and wellbeing of some of the most vulnerable in society, one of Scotland’s largest health charities has warned.

Agnes Laidlaw, 65, has been shielding since the start of the pandemic.

Jane-Claire Judson, Chief Executive at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, said many people with heart and stroke conditions were already struggling before the pandemic, and highlighted the charity’s virtual services which have been supporting those now required to stay at home.

Agnes Laidlaw, 65, lives in Inverness with her husband, where she has been shielding since the start of the pandemic.

“Lockdown has changed my life completely,” she said.

Mary Scott, 65, felt isolated during lockdown.

"I have been living inside my house for close to a year now because I’ve been shielding. I just can’t take any chances ending up in hospital. I can’t risk getting the infection or I would get seriously ill or worse.

“I have seen my daughters in the garden and that’s meant everything to me but we haven’t been able to hug or see the grandchildren. That has definitely been the hardest part.”

Ms Laidlaw said she has missed in-person support from Chest Heart & Stroke, but that the Zoom contact is what’s “keeping her going” at the moment.

Mary Scott, also 65, lives alone in Wishaw, and found herself struggling with her mental health during lockdown.

“I live on my own and I felt very isolated during lockdown. I was suffering from depression at the beginning of the year and lockdown made things even harder,” she said.

Ms Scott now has weekly calls with a volunteer, which she said are helping her to get by and feel more in control of her life.

“There are thousands of people in Scotland who really need this sort of help and my heart goes out to them. It’s so important to talk, it has really helped me,” she said.

A survey by Chest Heart & Stroke found that 60 per cent of 500 respondents across Scotland reported an increase in anxiety and stress as a result of the pandemic.

The charity has launched a campaign, No Life Half Lived, ahead of the 2021 Holyrood elections, urging all parties to work together to avoid a “permanent state of crisis” in the NHS.

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