What the Pandemic Is Doing to Our Mental Health—and How We Can Cope

The above types of support can also help prevent other behaviors linked to trauma, because most people who experience trauma won’t actually develop textbook PTSD. Instead, their trauma might trigger health-risk behaviors like increased use of alcohol, tobacco, or prescription medications—and interventions can help with those problems too.

While this might all be a lot of information to digest, especially given everything else going on, simply knowing some potential outcomes of stress and trauma—and recognizing that they are normal—can be helpful.

“It’s important to convey to folks the range of things that are normal and expected responses,” Morganstein says. “In this pandemic, for every one person who develops a psychological disorder, there will be a number who have trouble sleeping, who feel unsafe…. Normalizing things for people is one of the first elements of how we help.”

There are also ways we can try to cope on a day-to-day basis.

While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to all this, there are some broad guidelines we can all be following to help protect our mental health.

First, limit your exposure to anxiety-inducing stories and news about the pandemic. Morganstein stresses that media about COVID-19 is an important source of health care information, but “it’s also a source of distress and a way of distress being transmitted,” he says. “Research has consistently shown that increasing exposure to disaster-related media also increases a person’s psychological distress. It makes people’s sleep worse and has been associated with increasing use of alcohol, as well as increasing risk of depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms.” Instead, Morganstein recommends checking trusted sources for any updated health information that you and your family need, and stopping there. He says we shouldn’t leave news playing in the background and that it’s especially important to shield kids from emotionally distressing media broadcasts. Instead, give children age-appropriate information that they need to know.

Beyond that, do your best to follow your self-care routines, even in seemingly small ways. “One of the things that is easily overlooked, because people are busy mentally and physically dealing with a crisis, is basic self-care,” Morganstein says. “It’s not a new idea, but this is shaping up to be a marathon, not a sprint. Do things like getting sleep, eating as regularly as possible, staying hydrated, exercising, going out for a walk…to relax, to focus elsewhere, to allow stress in our bodies to be diminished.”

You can also rally behind the kind of systemic change that would better support those who are most vulnerable right now. “Unlike with COVID-19, which we couldn’t anticipate, we can anticipate a mental health crisis and implement things that might prevent that,” Koenen says. “We can really strengthen the social safety net. Policies that help people stay in their homes, that protect people’s income and allow them to have adequate access to food and basic needs, are actually things that will improve people’s mental health.” You don’t need to be a policy wonk or well-versed in economic theory to contact your local elected officials and show your support for legislation that supports renters, homeowners, small business owners, and everyday workers. Taking this step might help you feel a little more powerful at a time when it’s natural to feel powerless.

Lastly, as saccharine as this may sound, you can try doing a good deed. “If you can do something to help somebody else, this actually creates a positive physiological response for the person doing the good thing,” Koenen says. “Altruism really helps us feel better, and it can help us feel hopeful.” Consider what you’re able to offer another person right now, like picking up groceries for an elderly or immunocompromised neighbor on your next trip, donating to a cause important to you, dropping off a care package for someone who could use it, or just writing a letter to someone you miss.

It’s normal to have a tough time right now, but healing is possible.

The ultimate takeaway from all of this: Don’t feel guilty for being stressed, anxious, or depressed about what’s going on. All you can do is your best. “We’re kind of at war right now, to some degree,” Morganstein says. “The enemy is invisible, or very, very small. And we’re in a situation where our resources are limited and systems are becoming overwhelmed.”

https://www.self.com/story/pandemic-mental-health, GO TO SAUBIO DIGITAL FOR MORE ANSWERS AND INFORMATION ON ANY TOPIC

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

Take a look at our comprehensive guide to the best and most popular information ebooks and products available today on Detoxing, Colon Cleansing, Weight Loss and Dating and Romance. They are all in one spot, easy to find and compere to make a quick selection for the product that best fits your needs or wants.