CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) – According to data from County Health Rankings, West Virginia had among the country’s highest increase in mental distress over the past five years.
Data compiled by MyBioSource revealed that overall, West Virginia also had the seventh highest stress increase in the country from 2017 to 2021 and was tied for the highest increase in mental distress at 4%. Overall, Maine, North Dakota and Ohio saw the highest stress increase.
While West Virginia’s level of mental distress is high, some counties in West Virginia have an even more concerning stress level. Compared to the state’s total stress increase of 4%, some counties saw an increase by as much as 12% since 2017.
According to a MyBioSource data collection, Wirt, McDowell, Boone, Mingo, Randolph, Summers and Upshur counties all saw at least a 10% increase in physically and mentally stressed people, with Wirt at 12% and McDowell at 11%.
Ohio County saw the only decrease in stress in the state with a -1% increase in physical stress, however, the county still saw an overall stress increase.
The full ranking for all 55 West Virginia counties is as follows:
| Rank | County | % Physical Stress Change | % Mental Health Change | % Total Stress Change |
| 1 | Wirt | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| 2 | McDowell | 4 | 7 | 11 |
| 3 | Boone | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| 4 | Mingo | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| 5 | Randolph | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 6 | Summers | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 7 | Upshur | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 8 | Lincoln | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| 9 | Wayne | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| 10 | Braxton | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 11 | Calhoun | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 12 | Fayette | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 13 | Grant | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 14 | Logan | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 15 | Marion | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 16 | Marshall | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 17 | Pocahontas | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 18 | Preston | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 19 | Wyoming | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 20 | Barbour | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 21 | Clay | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 22 | Mason | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 23 | Monroe | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 24 | Pendleton | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 25 | Pleasants | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 26 | Ritchie | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 27 | Roane | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 28 | Webster | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 29 | Wetzel | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 30 | Doddridge | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 31 | Greenbrier | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 32 | Hampshire | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 33 | Hancock | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 34 | Jackson | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 35 | Lewis | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 36 | Mercer | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 37 | Nicholas | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| 38 | Taylor | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| 39 | Tucker | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 40 | Tyler | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| 41 | Brooke | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 42 | Cabell | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 43 | Hardy | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 44 | Harrison | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 45 | Kanawha | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 46 | Morgan | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 47 | Putnam | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| 48 | Berkeley | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 49 | Gilmer | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 50 | Raleigh | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| 51 | Wood | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 52 | Jefferson | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 53 | Mineral | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 54 | Monongalia | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 55 | Ohio | -1 | 3 | 2 |
