Is coronavirus indirectly impacting mental health?
In a recent survey, 28% of Americans who responded stated that they were concerned about their mental health being affected because of the coronavirus pandemic. But what exactly is causing increasing mental health problems in individuals? And to what extent is this threatening to interfere with people and their daily tasks?
In order to get to know this, let’s rewind a bit. Covid-19 outbreak began in late 2019 and since then has spread most countries due to which people have to observe social-distancing and isolation. So how does this cause a problem?
Social-distancing is harder than we thought
At the start of quarantine, many of us thought it’s a relief to stay confined in the comfort of your home, we expected this to be a much-needed break considering we would be back on track in the upcoming months. But instead, it’s been 7 months into 2020, and nothing has changed.
This has got many of us wondering when will this end? Uncertainty of what is yet to come has caused chaos, anxiety, and confusion among people. The thought of not being able to meet your loved ones for god knows how long is formidable. It is also causing frustration and fear in people who are victims of domestic abuse, their only safe haven being college/school which are closed due to the situation.
Care-taker stress is getting common
It cannot be denied that the world’s economy is falling rapidly, causing increasing redundancy. This is more than likely to cause anxiety, denial, and anger especially for people who have others dependant on them. Psychological distress in terms of worrying for your family members of falling victims to this disease is interfering with the minds of people. Besides, being ambiguous about where your next meal will come from can be really unnerving.
Young children may unknowingly be affected from a smaller age
It is noted that most of the mental development happens during the first few years of life. Children can be stressed out and not be able to fully comprehend the demise of the affectees of coronavirus, especially if it happens to be their immediate relative. Some children simply conceal emotions, which again, can be harmful and show difficulty much later in life which may affect the way they respond to various challenges in life. Reactions of different age groups may differ, but the root cause is usually the same and can be dealt with accordingly.
How to handle this situation?
There is no doubt that media and social networking play an important part in an average individuals’ life. Therefore, it is important that these platforms be used wisely and carefully to portray the ongoing situation. Parents should keep a close eye on their children's’ whereabouts on social media, as false information can impact them negatively.
Adults should try to keep in contact with their peers through video calls and assure themselves that they aren’t alone in this pandemic. Sometimes all it takes is one call from your loved ones to lift your whole mood.
Care-givers should be consoled in case of redundancy and introduced to new hobbies, work on their physique, etc, and they should be convinced that their mental and physical health comes first, no matter what.
Remember, this pandemic will pass making you, me, and all of us a better person than before. The challenge lies in how we treat it and spend this time trying to find the best possible version of ourselves.
