The COVID-19 Fear Factor and How You Can Cope

COVID-19, Health and Well-being, Mindfulness and Peace, Stress and Anxiety

I have heard it said that there is a virus that has infected far more people and is causing far more problems than the coronavirus. It is the virus of fear or the COVID-19 fear factor. The fear-factor during a health crisis is usually accompanied by stress, anxiety, and often panic behavior such as buying up all available water and toilet paper. This behavior is highly contagious and dangerous in its own right.

When we see others engaging in panic behavior, our brains respond with an anxiety spike. In certain situations, this is adaptive, but it can also be maladaptive. According to Psychology Today , sustained anxiety is bad for your health because whether the emergency is real or imagined, your body releases a stress hormone called cortisol. Over time, cortisol suppresses your immune system, causing a decrease in white blood cells, the cells that help fight off infection. This results in a lowering of our resistance to disease and its effects.

Reactions to the COVID-19 Fear factor

Reactions to the anxiety surrounding an infectious disease outbreak often include:

  • Fear and worry about your own health status and that of your loved ones.
  • Irritability, sadness and/or depression.
  • Difficulty sleeping or concentrating.
  • Worsening of chronic health problems.
  • Increased use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs

Social Isolation

COVID-19 has brought with it some unusual challenges. We are being instructed on the precautions we should take for our physical health. Most of us are doing the recommended hand washing, wearing of masks and working from home. There is one restrictive measure, however, that has proven more problematic than all others. That one is social isolation.  

Social isolation is a severe psychological and physiological stressor. The stress of isolation is likely to hit hardest those people who are already struggling to adapt to everyday life. An example would be people who are unemployed, those with pre-existing mental health problems, and those at risk for domestic violence and child abuse.

How To Cope

A certain amount of fear, along with accompanying reactions. is normal and can be addressed with simple behavioral and emotional strategies. If you are having difficulty coping with the multitude of stressors surrounding COVID-19, some of the strategies listed below might be helpful.

The Coping With COVID-19 Fear Factor Tip Sheet

Here are some ideas that can give you a strong start in managing the COVID-19 Fear Factor.

  1. Avoid excessive exposure to media coverage of COVID-19. Choose one time a day to read the news, watch the the TV lead stories, and check social media. Then go do other things.
  2. Connect with others. Reach out to family and friends. Schedule FaceTime dates. Make phone calls. My family recently had a Zoom “get together” and everybody came! Great fun – kept me smiling for days.
  3. Don’t contribute to the panic (the Fear Factor.) I love this advice from Psychology Today. They suggest that we talk to friends and family about our fears, but that we DO NOT flood Facebook and social media with our anxieties. Take care of your friends and loved ones by sharing “the good stuff” and reducing anxiety contagion.
  4. Take care of your body. Exercise regularly, try to eat healthy, well-balanced meals, get plenty of sleep and avoid excessive alcohol and other drugs.
  5. Keep a routine. Chaos can cause you to want to do everything and nothing at all. Sometimes I just want to lie in bed and wait until this whole thing is over! I have found that I feel better and am definitely happier if I get up, get dressed, have breakfast, take my dog for a walk – in other words, preserve normality as much as possible.
  6. Use this time as an opportunity to do something different. For example, check out Painting With Bob Ross on YouTube.
  7. Keep laughing. Don’t lose your sense of humor. Laughing about a shared struggle can be incredibly cathartic.
  8. Make time to cultivate calmness and clarity. I’ve spent a lifetime working as a psychologist, continually reading the research on strategies that are most helpful for reducing anxiety, calming the mind and promoting living a happy and healthy life. There is nothing I have found more effective than meditation. Don’t panic. It’s easier than you might think.

About the Meditation Thing

 Years ago, the whole idea of meditation just seemed so weird to me – something the “hippies” did. I believed that proper meditation was sitting quietly for long periods of time, maybe chanting Om, and definitely not allowing thoughts to enter your head. As a lifetime ADHD person, that seemed totally unachievable! But because I kept reading the well-researched benefits of meditation, I stuck with the idea of including meditation in my daily routine. Here is what I have learned from books, online research, YouTube and personal experience:

  1. What is meditation: Meditation is a mental exercise that trains attention and awareness. Its secular purpose is often to curb reactivity to one’s negative thoughts and feelings. Practicing meditation, even a few minutes a day, is the process of training your mind to become clear of negative thoughts and providing relief from the chaos of daily life.
  2. What are the benefits of meditation: Practicing meditation, even for short periods of time, can reduce the mind’s chatter and help decrease the anxiety and depression that sometimes accompanies the chatter. In restoring calm, the immune system and our resistance to disease is strengthened.
  3. Does my mind have to be completely blank to meditate? This is the best news I have had! Long time meditators teach us that it is common for a person’s thoughts to wander during meditation, especially when they are first starting. For most people, especially beginners, trying to stop thinking usually just intensifies unwanted thoughts. Instead, the key is to notice when the mind wanders and (non-judgmentally) bring the attention gently back to the meditation practice.
  4. What type of meditation should I try: There are many kinds of meditation. Mindfulness meditation is rapidly growing in popularity among professional athletes, business executives and anyone who wants to cultivate a calmer mind and clear focus. In this type of meditation, one turns their attention to a single point of reference, such as the breath or bodily sensations. The practice has been shown to decrease distraction and rumination, make negative automatic thoughts seem easier to let go of, and promote greater focus on (and enjoyment of) the present moment. I especially enjoy mindful walking meditation. My goal is simply to keep my mind focused on the experience of my walk (the grass, the trees, the clouds, the sounds of the birds) rather than stressful thoughts. Very peaceful, very relaxing. And my dog loves having me “fully present” with her.

Resources

Because I have personally enjoyed the benefits of mindfulness meditation, I would like to share with you some resources I have found especially helpful as well as enjoyable:

  1. Palouse Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR): (Click here) This is a complete eight-week online MBSR training course that is 100% free. It is created by a fully certified MBSR instructor and is based on the program founded by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. The program is divided into eight training segments (one week each) and includes guided meditations, articles and videos (also free with the program.) I am currently working toward the completion of this training program, and can personally attest to the quality and effectiveness of the program
  2. TEDx Talk “The Power of Mindfulness: What You Practice Grows Stronger by Shauna Shapiro. If you have 13 minutes and 45 seconds, this video is definitely worth your time. (click here)
  3. Mindful Body Scan Exercise by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Professor of Medicine Emeritus and creator of the Stress Reduction Clinic and the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. (click here)

You will find additional strategies in my blog, The New Normal: 12 Strategies For Achieving Happiness In The World of COVID-19 (click here) 

Conclusion

No amount of articles or blog posts can prevent you from experiencing moments of crisis in your life such as COVID-19 and the accompanying stress and anxiety. But hopefully, learning and implementing some of the steps shown above will help you to better take care of yourself and each other. In the meantime, I’ll keep researching, practicing and sharing with you.

May you be happy, healthy and safe!

Donna