Coping mentally with COVID-19: Ways to stay balanced

Coping mentally with COVID-19 can be a struggle for many. Being on lockdown can take a toll on everyone, not just physically but mentally. Social distancing is considered to be the best recommendations to prevent the spread of the virus. But what about the mental effects of this? Anxiety, isolation and loneliness can make it hard so some people to get through the long days at home. There are many mentally coping strategies out there. Here are some at-home practices for anyone who might be need help coping mentally with COVID-19 and remaining balanced while staying at home.

Keep a routine

Keeping a routine is essential, especially if you have kids. Deborah Serani, PsyD, professor of psychology at Adelphi University says that, “Unstructured time can create boredom, spikes in anxiety or depression, which can lead to unhealthy patterns of coping.” She recommends waking up, exercising and eating at the same time each day will help to reduce stress and the overwhelming worry. Make a schedule and stick to it.

Get outside (if you can)

Getting outside has both physical and mental advantages. Exercise, even if its just walking, will get the heart pumping, reduce stress and maybe help you to sleep at night. Simply breathing fresh air can clear the mind, reduce depression as well as give you a little Vitamin D when the sun is shining to help in coping mentally with COVID-19.

Maintain relationships (from a safe distance)

Stay in touch with your friends, family, neighbors and co-workers. Interaction with other people is essentially a basic psychological need and will give you a sense of community. Texting and social media works, but picking up the phone and talking or video-conferencing, or even having a safe-distance conversation on the street, will help with the loneliness and cope

Meditate

Finding a quiet place and time during the day to meditate or simply doing some slow-breathing has been proven to help reduce stress and improve your mental capacity. Use this time to do some self-reflecting and gain a piece of mind knowing we are all in this situation together.

Stay safe out there!