Mental Health and the Pandemic

We all have been living in the constant fear of contracting the disease and it is stressing everyone in the world right now. Availability issues related to groceries, fear about the disease, total lockdown, being stuck at home, inability to get home essentials all this is negatively impacting everyone.

This pandemic has turned everything upside down, people are lost, scared, defeated, hopeless, away from family, penniless, overwhelmed and stressed about what will happen next. It has completely changed our lives, altered our routines, put a strain on financial matters and lead to social distancing.

All this happening due to the pandemic can lead to anxiety and other mental health issues. It is affecting everyone differently but we can manage and keep our physical and mental health intact by doing the following things:·

Maintaining a normal routine

Trying to maintain the normal routine as much as possible regarding your sleep, nourishment and exercise. It gives you a sense of control when you follow a normal routine of fulfilling your basic needs of food and sleep and it also helps you in keeping your sleep cycle and bodily functions in check.

Limit the news you read

Constant bombarding of news about the widespread of the virus, growth in the number of cases and increasing fatalities makes you feel much more anxious, terrified and worried for yourself as well as for your loved ones leading to mood changes, negative thoughts, lethargy, loss of appetite etc. You need to balance the amount of news you expose yourself to on a daily basis like checking the news only once/ twice a day, checking the news on a stipulated time, checking the news related to other matters and trying to find some positive news, this way you can save yourself from anxiety and hopelessness.

Talk to others

Talk about whatever you are going through with your family, friends or with anyone you can confide in. Humans are social beings and in this period of lockdown people are physically apart but it might make you feel much better when you talk to someone (phone calls or video calls) to communicate and vent out about your problems, struggles, thoughts and feelings.

Eat a balanced diet

Eating a nourishing diet can help to keep yourself physically fit and a well-nourished body can handle stress much more efficiently. Try to include fresh fruits, green vegetables, whole grains, less oily and less spicy foods in your diet to look after yourself.

Sleep well

Getting a quality sleep of 8 hours every day can keep your mental health in check. You can try to follow a proper schedule of sleeping and waking up at the same time every day and try to cut down on screen time around your bedtime as it can help in achieving a timely and quality sleep.

Physical Exercises

Engaging yourself in physical exercises can be very beneficial, regular exercising produces dopamine and serotonin (hormones associated with happiness and regulation of mood) and these two work as natural anti-depressants. Exercises should be done every day even if it is for 10 minutes. You can start small but be consistent and add up more minutes after you get used to a routine.

Taking care of your family & friends

Checking up on your friends, family and loved ones as this gives you a sense of relief and satisfaction that everyone is fine, healthy and safe.

Stay Caught up

Keep yourself busy by engaging in your hobbies, deep clean your room/wardrobes, learn a new language, take up a course you always wanted to but could never find time for. Make better use of technology to browse for interesting online courses and enhance your skillset. Staying busy keeps you distracted from the cycle of negativity and function much better.

Gift some time to yourself

Relaxing and enjoying some ‘me’ time can be rejuvenating. A few minutes of quiet time can help to reduce anxiety and refresh your mind. Practice yoga, meditate, read a book or listen to music. Do anything that works for you or maybe do nothing, just be with yourself and see how it helps you in taking care of your mental health.We all need to be a bit more patient, careful and take care of our health. Let us all stay at our homes, go out only when it is really important, keep maintaining physical distance from others and stay safe.

We shall overcome this as well!