Has the COVID-19 raised your blood pressure? Have you found yourself feeling anxious with the constant news coverage of the pandemic?
Individuals worldwide are experiencing a change of lifestyle and increased anxiety related to COVID-19. The meaning we attach to this experience can drastically impact how we manage our thoughts, emotions, and behaviours.
For example, if we have a slight cough and attach an image or a thought such as “I’m going to die” we can understand why our bodies might send us into an anxiety response sometimes known as fight, flight or freeze. This anxiety response can create many symptoms in our body from sweaty palms to a sensation of difficulty breathing, resulting in further symptoms we may attribute to the slight cough. This cycle can create a spiral of anxiety and keeps us from utilizing our calming and more logical centres in our brains, as our thoughts become catastrophic in nature.
So what can we do to decrease the catastrophic thinking? We need to engage in the rational and self-soothing parts of our brain when we are dealing with uncertainty and anxiety, and here’s how to do it.
First, recognize it's ok to feel anxious. Anxiety is the way we keep ourselves safe and shows that our brains and body are working very well together. What we want to do is manage our anxiety so that it’s a helpful response and tolerable.
Pay attention to what you can control: These are things like how much news you're watching (which engages the anxiety centres in our brain) versus how many calming and logical activities you're engaging in. Naturally we want to be informed, but we do not have to be inundated by it for the majority of our day. We also can recognize that social media has become less “social” and more “media” so creating the awareness within ourselves that when we go on social media we are opening the door for the news to bombard us whether we like it or not. Decreasing how much news you're engaging in (and from what sources) can be one of the most effective ways to help manage your anxiety amid this global pandemic.
So what to do instead of the news … how do we create that balance? Pleasurable events (things you do for the sake of bringing you joy) and mastery (things you do to gain a sense of accomplishment) can bring us into the moment rather than focusing on the anticipation of what the future may look like.
Make your lists and try to ensure there is a combination of both pleasure and mastery in your week. Some activities you can consider may include gardening, listening to the birds singing, engaging in creative tasks like painting or crocheting, doing some spring cleaning, learning a new language or musical instrument, trying new recipes, or writing thank you letters to others letting them know how much you appreciate them.
Make sure to move your body. Try streaming online yoga, workouts or join online programs currently being offered. In house workouts are a great way to burn off the anxiety symptoms created in the body by the fight, flight or freeze response. Burn it off so you feel less restless and sleep better.
Do not disengage socially even though we have to engage in physical distancing. Physical distancing means keeping a safe distance from other people (about two meters) and includes the preventative measures the government has implemented to help keep us safe. It is important that we do not engage in social distancing as we need to stay connected to loved ones, friends and colleagues and we can do this over the phone or with face to face digital measures. These connections provide us with a sense of normalcy, community, meaning and maybe a few laughs while we go through this difficult time together.
Remember you are not in this alone. Make sure you know about your crisis service lines and other connections in your community so that you can reach out to your primary care provider, psychotherapist or crisis services if the need arises.
Here is a list of some of the services that are available:
- 1-800-841-1101 Health Sciences North Crisis Intervention Services;
- 1-833-456-4566 Crisis Services Canada;
- 1-800-668-6868 Kids Help Phone;
- 1-855-242-3310 First Nations and Inuit Hope for Wellness Help Line;
- 1-877-330-6366 Transgender Crisis Line
- 1-855-892-9992 A Friendly Voice for Seniors
Stacey E. Roles & Associates is comprised of registered multidisciplinary clinicians who are all certified cognitive behavioural therapists. Learn more at StaceyRolesTherapy.com.
