Posted By: Stella Pike | July 10, 2020
The COVID-19 Pandemic has taken a significant toll on people across the globe. Since the start of Coronavirus disease, many people’s lives continue to be affected and it has likely brought many changes to daily routines
This virus has led so many fears like financial fear and forced to social isolation, with the rising figures of confirmed cases its impact on the global population has been drastic. While the physical impact of COVID-19 has largely been talked about, the way the outbreak has affected mental health needs to be considered too.
During this pandemic situation, you may worry about getting sick, how long the pandemic will last and what the future will bring, several rumours and misinformation can make your life feel out of control and make you experience
As this virus have a negative impact on your physical and mental health the countries introduce measures to restrict movement as a part of efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
This pandemic is not just a medical phenomenon, it has affected individuals and society on many levels, a wide fragment of the world’s population forced to be restricted to their homes, owing to nationwide lockdowns and home-confinement strategies implemented in the COVID-19 hit countries.
The imposed mass quarantine applied by nationwide lockdown programs can produce mass anxiety, hysteria and distress. The sign of anxiety and panic showing by people has risen significantly. The disease has created a noticeable psychological impact and has risen the fear of uncertainty.
Although staying at home is the best way to stop this virus from spreading but it has some mental consequences as well like:
The sense of uncertainty arising out of economic instability and discrimination. People have lost jobs, friends and family members and lack of work led to no financial means to take care of daily food expenses.
Inability to work cause financial loss and create serious economic hardship, with enduring psychological impacts such as anger, anxiety persisted for months after quarantine.
This pandemic is affecting our lives in so many ways. People all around the world are grappling with fear and insecurity over their survival.
Mental health is getting affected on the individual level like:
It is more likely that people around the globe are more affected by the fact of fear that they’ll catch up with the virus than actually catching it. No doubt, this virus changed the psychologist of billions out there, what we can do for now is to take care of ourselves and our loved ones by taking some precautions suggested by World Health Organisation (WHO) and keep thinking positive about the situation.
This corona virus pandemic has heightened uncertainty over almost everything such as economy, employment, finance, relationships and physical and mental health.
The following steps will help you to better deal with uncontrollable circumstances:
Social distancing or you can say isolation and loneliness can exacerbate anxiety and depression hence, impact our physical and mental health. Stay connected with your loved ones over a call, chat, video chatting or Skype dates to counteract that tendency.
Besides some stress management activities like eating healthy meals, getting plenty of sleep or exercising that might already be applied by you, here are some tips for practicing self-care that are helpful during this pandemic.
It is crucial to stay updated, particularly about what’s happening in your community. On the other hand, people tend to experience greater anxiety that can be stem from being immersed 24/7 in sensationalistic coverage that only feeds into fear.
Be discerning about what you read and watch around you, only stick to the trustworthy sources, also in case if you feel a sense of anxiety then limit your media consumption to a specific time frame and be careful in sharing information.
At this time of COVID-19 Pandemic, there are so many things that are beyond of our control such as, how long the pandemic might last, the behaviour of other people over this and what’s going to happen in upcoming days. Whenever you feel like getting caught up in fear of what might happen, you should try to shift your focus to the things which are in human control.
Taking small and useful steps can reduce the risks of getting infected to this severe corona virus outbreak.
These are the recommendations from health authorities that you can do easily and help you feel safe.
By putting some effort into avoiding high-risk activities to stay healthy and mentally fit will lower your chance of contracting COVID-19. Staying busy and keeping in touch with our friends and family by phone and stay away from negative narratives on social media will help you be at a healthy physical and mental state.