Mangaluru, Mar 31: The pandemic coronavirus (COVID-19) has caused havoc all over the world. Fear, anxiety, stress, and depression are natural during this period, however, everyone is finding themselves engulfed within it. People of different ages react to this crisis in various ways. At the beginning of this article, I would like to focus on two age groups and then include few strategies to enhance our mental health.
Children face enormous disruptions in daily routine along with worry and fear. Fear of own death, fear of the relatives/family dying, less opportunity to be with friends, difficulty concentrating, emotional exhaustion, lack of paly all of these hamper overall well-being. Tantrums, anger, and irritability can also increase in them if not properly cared for which can pressurize parents. This can be handled by parents posing themselves as good role models. Help children engage in age-appropriate learning activities and express their creativity through indoor play, sketching, drawing, creating stories of their own and so on.
The elderly are considered to be very vulnerable population to COVID-19, and media communicating this can be disturbing and frightening to the elderly. Some may be living alone and this can aggravate their fear, irritation, sleeplessness and thus can worsen their mental health. The elderly can divert by undertaking mild physical activity at home, continuing with daily routine, maintain social connections through digital media, those familiar with using it.
Some strategies to follow include:
1. Develop resilient mindset: Resilience means bouncing back. Mental health professionals can focus on creating a “resilient mindset” in people rather than only highlighting on risk and protective factors. Building a resilient mindset helps us deal with stress, cope with challenges, and develop realistic goals.
2. Relaxation and enhance positive thoughts: Spend time relaxing both body and mind through techniques like deep breathing, mindful meditation, Yoga and Prayer. Enhance positive thoughts by listening to your favorite music, adding humor in life, reframe negative thoughts and most importantly by being optimistic.
3. Connecting with dear ones: Many people after being diagnosed/ doubting having COVID-19 have committed suicide. Better family support and sharing of worries and feelings with family and friends can help everyone. Phone/Video calls, texting can help overcome isolation and fear.
4. Maintaining physical well-being: As the saying goes ‘A sound mind in a sound body’ eat healthy foods, take enough liquids, exercise and have good sleep hygiene to boost immunity.
5. Activate your mind: Start new things or adapt things that you usually enjoyed, into indoor activities. Joining online courses, solving puzzles, reading, going back to old hobbies can make a difference.
6. Right knowledge about COVID-19: Many of us are still confused about differentiating with the symptoms of Flu, common cold and COVID-19.Media can portray a clear difference between all these through local languages frequently. Highlighting on the hopeful stories from people being recovered from this disease can help boost everyone’s positive spirits.
7. Break from all media coverage of COVID-19: As family limit exposure to the coverage of the disease. Rely on trusted sources like WHO website and local health authorities for the present statistics in your place. Believe in facts and not rumours.
8. Seek professional support: When all these strategies don’t work for you, it’s right time to reach and ask for the professional help from counselors, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers via teletherapy/counseling.
Though COVID-19 as imprisoned the whole world into our homes, all of us will adhere to our Prime Minister who wrapped his current address to the nation by quoting ‘Do not go outside and but use this opportunity to introspect’.