You don’t need us to tell you that the coronavirus pandemic has not been beneficial for the publics’ mental health. Even people who were previously mentally healthy have struggled in one way or another. And for those people who were already predisposed to mental health conditions such as anxiety, the pandemic has only made things worse. While some people have general anxiety, others have anxiety directly related to the virus. In this blog, we’re going to look at some key tips for reducing coronavirus-related anxiety.
Stop Watching the News
We could suggest that everyone stops watching the news even when there’s not a global pandemic taking place. There’s rarely anything good on there! And while what they report is often accurate (despite what some people say), they only focus on the bad news. The 24/7 coverage of coronavirus that we saw at the beginning of the pandemic was pretty over the top. Would you be better off not watching the news? Probably. If something major happens, then you’ll surely hear about it from someone. You can switch off the television but you can’t make your coworkers stop people about coronavirus.
Sit With Your Feelings
If you’re feeling anxious, or any other negative feeling for that matter, then it’s a good idea to sit with your feelings for a little while, especially if there’s no obvious way to expel that anxiousness (such as running/exercise). Through meditation, you can look within and observe your feelings without judgment. You’ll typically find that they disappear into thin air once you’ve turned the spotlight on them. Dig deep into yourself; where do these anxious thoughts come from? How do they feel in your body? And perhaps most important of all, what happens when you look at them? You’ll likely find that it’s nothing bad whatsoever.
Know That It’s Being Tackled
It would be completely justified to have a lot of coronavirus anxiety if it felt like no-one was doing anything about it. But that’s not the case. While we weren’t as prepared for the pandemic as we could have been, we were still pretty well prepared, and in any case, launched into action as soon as possible. We’ve created a vaccine that can be stored in a medical fridge and transported around the world. In the not too distant future, we’ll all be vaccinated against coronavirus — and the threat that it now poses will become a memory.
Get the Data
It is terrible that so many people have died of coronavirus. However, it’s important to keep things in perspective. Even if you were to get coronavirus, which is pretty unlikely as it is, the chances are that you would only have mild symptoms — if you had any symptoms at all. While you should take every precaution to protect yourself against the virus (for your own sake and the sake of other people), there’s no reason to live in fear of what might happen if you did, because it’ll likely be pretty underwhelming in the end.