Survey Finds Over 25% of Truck Drivers Battle Depression

Professional truck drivers face specific mental health challenges. Drivers can spend long hours on the road, isolated away from home and family. Consequently, they may turn to distractions such as electronics, online shopping, fast food, drugs and alcohol out of boredom and disconnection. Experts have identified these problems and are shining a light on driver mental wellness, offering interventions that can help. In a recent article by TrueNorth, which referenced a survey by the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 27.9% of truck drivers suffer from loneliness and 26.9% battle depression.

The pandemic has worsened this solitary state for drivers, placing a new focus on driver mental wellness and interventions that can help them. Even before the pandemic, transportation workers exhibited the fourth-highest suicide rate among occupational groups, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Truck drivers are fifth on the list of highest risk for work-related suicide, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

While suicide prevention is an ongoing issue, September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and mental health advocates, prevention organizations, survivors and community members are uniting to promote suicide prevention in the transportation industry.

It is essential to recognize the warning signs, misconceptions, barriers, cultural factors and demographic factors that impact suicide prevention efforts, and to highlight effective prevention strategies, coping mechanisms and treatment options for depression.

If you are thinking about suicide, seek help by dialing 988 on any mobile phone or landline to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which is available 24/7 and is free and confidential. The hotline also offers help to non-English speakers.

Another resource for truckers and their families is the National Association of Mental Illness, which offers a free crisis helpline and other mental health resources throughout the United States. Reach the helpline by phone at 800-950-6264 or text 62640.