Objective: Health care workers (HCWs) are at risk for suffering negative psychological consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as secondary traumatic stress symptoms (STS), as they are exposed to this traumatic experience both directly, as community residents, and indirectly, in the care of infected patients. Following vicarious exposure, positive psychological outcomes, such as vicarious posttraumatic growth (VPTG), are also likely, though they are less studied. The present study aims to examine (a) the associations among STS, VPTG, and coping strategies among HCWs during the COVID-19 lockdown and (b) the mediating role of coping strategies in the STS–VPTG relationship. Method: Cross-sectional online data were collected amid the COVID-19 lockdown in Greece (March 23, 2020 through May 3, 2020) from a sample of 647 HCWs (25% men, 75% women). The Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, the Post Traumatic Growth Inventory, and the Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced Inventory were used to measure STS, VPTG, and coping strategies, respectively. Results: HCWs reported moderate to low levels of STS and VPTG, with the VPTG dimensions of personal strength and appreciation of life being the highest categories. Intrusions mental and both adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies predicted VPTG. Adaptive coping strategies partially mediated the relationship between STS and VPTG, whereas maladaptive coping strategies fully mediated this relationship. Conclusions: Understanding the coping responses during lockdown among HCWs is important for developing tailored prevention and intervention actions to protect the populations at risk from the deleterious impacts of uncontrollable and life-threatening diseases and promote posttraumatic growth.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the association between lithium levels in the public water supply and prefecture-based suicide rates in Greece. Analyses were conducted with respect to lithium levels in 149 samples from 34 prefectures of Greece. The average lithium level was 11.10 μg/l (range 0.1 to 121 μg/l). The results indicate that there is a tendency for lower suicide rates in the prefectures with high levels of lithium in drinking water. Ecological studies explained by researchers Schrauzer and Shrestha have revealed the existence of statistically significant inverse associations between the lithium levels in drinking water and the incidence of suicides, homicides, rapes, possession of narcotic drugs, and in juveniles, the rates of runaway from home. Such a result of inverse relationship was not proven by Kabacs et al., most likely because the differences of the lithium levels in the selection of their case-control samples were not large enough. In addition, probably the selection of random regions in Japan and East England might have been biased. Thus, the addition of small amounts of lithium to the drinking water could provide an effective means to lower the incidence of these conditions in the general population. Furthermore, the nutritional importance of lithium in the form of the carbonate named lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) is currently still viewed primarily as a pharmacological agent. The study by Al-Chalabi et al. state that the therapeutic activity of lithium in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is worth investigating. Any drug that can be shown to slow the course of ALS in a clinically significant way and to be safe and well tolerated will be an important advance for patients with this disease.

The aim was to (i) compare the rates of perceived stress, post‐traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and other potential correlates (i.e., resilience, social support, coping strategies, and loneliness) in the general population between the two COVID‐19 lockdowns in Greece and (ii) explore risk and protective factors of PTSS. Online data were collected amid the first (timepoint 1‐T1) and second lockdown (timepoint 2‐T2) by 1009 and 352 participants, respectively. The PTSD Checklist for DSM‐5 and the Perceived Stress Scale measured levels of PTSS and perceived stress. The Brief Resilience Scale, the COPE, the revised UCLA Loneliness Scale, and the ENRICHD Social Support Instrument measured resilience, coping strategies, loneliness, and social support, respectively. Higher levels of PTSS and perceived stress were reported during T2, compared to T1. Clinically significant levels of PTSS were presented by 26.1% and 35.5% of the participants during T1 and T2, respectively. Higher levels of loneliness and use of maladaptive coping strategies and lower levels of social support, resilience and use of adaptive coping strategies were also found. During both lockdowns, PTSS were predicted by perceived stress, loneliness, reduced resilience and the coping strategies of denial and self‐blame. PTSS were associated with younger age, female gender, being single, not having children, and the evaluation of the pandemic as a crisis. The findings highlight the significant public mental health concerns during the COVID‐19 lockdowns. Understanding the risk and protective factors against PTSS and focusing on vulnerable populations should be prioritized by the governments worldwide in the development of evidence‐based interventions.

The study examined whether online and offline social capital and offline social support are associated with less perceived stress in 403 undergraduate Greek college students through the mediating role of resilience and life satisfaction. Gender differences were also explored. A path analysis explored the relationships among the study variables and multi‐group analysis explored gender differences. Perceived stress was predicted indirectly by offline social support and offline bonding social capital through resilience and life satisfaction and directly by online bonding. However, offline bonding was associated with reduced resilience and life satisfaction, whereas social support was associated with increased levels of both. Interestingly, whereas offline bonding was associated with reduced perceived stress through resilience for women, for men it occurred through life satisfaction, and it was primarily resilience for women and life satisfaction for men that predicted reduced perceived stress. It was concluded that different personal ties/relationships are associated with perceived stress through diversified pathways and the pathways are different for men and women. Offline social support between closely tied persons is positively associated and offline bonding is negatively associated with the inner resources for a person to cope with stress, whereas online bonding is beneficial in directly decreasing stress.