Managing Anxiety in Times of Mass Panic
Hello!
I hope you're all doing well and aren't experiencing too much disruption. It's an unsettling time at the moment watching a global pandemic unfold. And a lot of you, like me, are watching two clear camps unfolding on your social media feeds: to panic or not to panic. And it's easy to sit back and laugh at the people panic buying toilet roll and barricading themselves into their houses but I don't feel that that's particularly productive. From my point of view as a veteran anxiety sufferer, what we're seeing is a great many people experiencing abnormal feelings of anxiety and panic for the first time. I've seen people lamenting trouble sleeping, feeling frightened of going to the supermarket, frightened of leaving their beds... I'm smiling slightly as I write this as this is the exact description I've given of the periods when my anxiety has been at its worst. If you're reading this and have experienced any of the above, you're experiencing anxiety. And it's not nice. So, without further ado, I'm going to give you some advice on anxiety management because whilst I may not know very much about coronavirus, I know a lot about anxiety.
1. Understand Your Feelings
Human beings are creatures of habit. We love patterns, routines, order - it's been proven by evolution and the development of society. At the moment, lots of people's routines and life structure are being impacted - you might not be able to travel in the same way, the supermarkets are running out of supplies that you're used to being able to buy, you might not be able to go to work as normal. As soon as our structure becomes impacted, we begin to feel disoriented. As more things begin to spiral out of our own personal control, we start panicking. And when we start panicking, we start behaving irrationally (i.e. buying lots of toilet paper). So the first step is to identify that you feel anxious, and that the lack of control is a natural cause of that angst, probably more than you might realise.
2. Concentrate on What You Can Control
Very often with things that make us anxious, there are things we can't control. It is very easy to focus on those things but trust me, the more you focus on what you can't change, the more distressed you will become. And in this case, you can control your hygiene and lifestyle, and you can control the information you take in (I will draw on this more later). Let's focus on health and lifestyle.
Unfortunately, stress and heightened anxiety weakens your immune system so in order to keep our bodies strong, we need to keep our minds nice and calm.
Wash your hands regularly. You don't need antibacterial gel. Soap and water will serve you just fine.
Keep your bedsheets and clothes clean - especially if you're in relationships or having sex with somebody. You really should be washing your sheets anyway but just keep that in mind!
Wipe your kitchen surfaces before and after food prep. The ritual of this will help you feel in control and calm you down - and it's just generally a good idea.
Drink lots of water. I get lots of affectionate jokes from my family on how much I drink but it is so necessary. Drinking lots flushes your system of toxins far more effectively than any of these weird and wonderful detox drinks social media will sell you. Not only this but hydrating yourself keeps your brain hydrated and it'll allow you to think clearly which will calm you right down.
Try and eat a balanced diet with lots of fresh fruit and veg. If you feel healthy, you'll have more energy and your anxiety has less chance of becoming all-consuming.
Get enough sleep. Sleepless nights are no good for your mental health - I know this is easier said than done so I will give you some advice later on.
If you're really worried, avoid super warm places like gyms and saunas - heat gets you hot and bothered anyway but germs are big fans of the warmth.
In the end, like any illness, if you're going to catch it, you will but you can at least try and take care of yourself as best you can. You will feel much better for it, I promise.
3. Police Your Social Media
Goodness me, the amount of fear mongering and general hysterical panic I have seen on social media is unbelievable. We are all being bombarded with scary statements on all sides - a lot of which aren't based on any real fact so is it any real wonder we're starting to feel anxious? Therefore, I would strongly advise that you ruthlessly mute anyone you follow that's posting things about the virus that worry you. Cut the negativity, cut the bullshit. Fill your feed with things that make you feel balanced. If your friends insist on talking about it, gently let them know that you would rather speak about something else.
I'm not saying don't stay informed. Check the news once a day, and be really strict with yourself. Focusing on it 24/7 is not going to make the virus go away, nor is it going to help your mental health. Also, if you are having trouble sleeping, turn your phone OFF 30 minutes before you go to sleep. If you're scrolling through endless posts on mass panic, those are the messages that are going to be in your brain whilst you're sleeping, and are likely to disrupt your sleep.
Remember, your social media feeds are yours, no-one else's, and you have absolute control on what you want to see.
4. Calm Distractions and Switching Off
When my anxiety gets really bad, I have to take myself completely away from social media. I put my phone on 'Do Not Disturb', I mute the people and group chats I'm not in a space to hear from, or on more extreme days, I turn my phone off and put it in a drawer. Now in our overly connected world, I'm sure this sounds mean or extreme but something I've been working on with my therapist is that I do not have to be available to everyone 24 hours a day. I do not owe people my time. And neither do you. Switch off.
Sometimes I'll sit and read - I love anything by Mark Haddon - and just allow myself to be transported into a world outside my own for a while. And the beauty of reading is that you're sat nice and still, your breathing slows right down, your heart rate becomes steady, and you can allow yourself to just be calm.
I also like watching cosy films. I'm not one for violent films at all, I just can't do it. So I like to watch films that I know will make me feel nice. For example 'About Time', 'Legally Blonde', or 'Edie' to name a few. Compose a watch list that will allow you to feel completely distracted from what's going on around you and just let yourself be absorbed by that for a couple of hours.
I also love to go and swim when I feel anxious and just let all the stresses of the day flow out into the rhythm of the stroke. If there's a sport or exercise you like to do, I recommend you carry on - even if it's just some yoga in your bedroom.
5. Create Your Safe Space
All of the above has been about making yourself feel safe, and we've covered creating a digital safe space but I also think a physical safe space is important.
Tidy your bedroom and make sure you have things in it that make you feel calm, whether that's scented candles or a nice throw. I know this sounds trivial but I've found that having somewhere I feel completely comfortable really helps.
Be kind to one another, try your best to carry on as normal, and for goodness sake, please stop posting scary things online with questionable basis in fact. It doesn't help anybody.
I hope this was helpful for someone.
Lots of Love,
Sarah xxx
