Editorial: The changed life: how COVID-19 affected people's psychological well-being, feelings, thoughts, behavior, relations, language and communication

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted deeply on the lives of millions of people around the world. In addition to the effects of the virus on physical health, the pandemic also had considerable psychological and social effects on individuals, the outcomes of which, just like the physical ones, are slow to disappear. Thus, the expression “long-COVID” seemed to be applicable not only to describe the long-term effects on the physical health of people who have contracted the virus, but also to refer to the long-term psychological outcomes, identifiable both in those who have been infected and, more generally, in all those who had to cope with the loss of relatives and friends, the fear of being infected and/or infecting others, as well as with social restrictions, lockdown, distancing, working and studying remotely, and other similar challenges. The way of handling these difficulties has been very different and, while there were people who were overwhelmed by fear, uncertainty, anxiety, and depression, there were others who have shown remarkable resilience.