BREXIT has left more than four in 10 Scots feeling powerless, angry or worried over the past year, according to a survey by the Mental Health Foundation Scotland.
Pollsters interviewing 1,025 adults between March 14 and 18 this year, found that 44 per cent had been left feeling angry over the previous 12 months as negotiations to exit the EU unfolded.
Similar proportions - 43% and 45% respectively - reported having felt worried or powerless.
Just over one in five people (21%) also said that in the last year they had felt anxious because of Brexit, while a similar proportion (19%) said it had caused them ‘high levels of stress’.
Brexit-related conflict also emerges from the survey as a fairly common experience, with more than one-in-ten (13 per cent) of all Scottish respondents saying they had ever had a disagreement about Brexit with a family member or partner.
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Toni Giugliano of The Mental Health Foundation Scotland said the poll results suggest that nearly two million adults in Scotland will have experienced various negative emotions as a result of Brexit.
He added: “This is true among both people who voted Leave and Remain.
"Almost three in five people (57 per cent) who voted Remain said they have felt powerless, while a third (33 per cent) who voted Leave felt the same thing.
“Feelings of powerlessness or worry are linked to a higher risk of mental health problems and they may also exacerbate existing difficulties.
“Our Brexit poll indicates the importance of our environments to our mental health. We also know, from other examples worldwide, that an unstable political environment can potentially affect people’s mental health.
“The number of people who said they felt high levels of stress or problems sleeping is also a concern and this may be linked to the 24/7 back-to-back reporting on the issue."
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