As the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to spread throughout the world and the number of cases diagnosed continues to increase, anxiety related to the epidemic also increases.
Train yourself to accept uncertainty
Failure to endure uncertainty makes a person more susceptible to anxiety. A study conducted during the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic shows that people who find it more difficult to accept uncertainty are more likely to experience high anxiety. Therefore it is important to learn gradually to overcome uncertainties in daily life by relaxing control behavior. Start small: for example, don’t send SMS to friends immediately when you find answers to questions. Go hiking without checking the weather first. By strengthening your tolerance for uncertainty, you can reduce your tendency to use the Internet to keep up with the latest developments.
Oppose the paradox of anxiety
Anxiety increases in proportion to the number of things you try to get rid of. Or as Carl Jung said, “Whatever is rejected remains.” The fight against anxiety can take many forms: drinking more than just excuses, eating too much or misusing the Netflix series … We can also seek constant comfort from friends, family or health specialists. This can also be translated into obsessive viewing of online news feeds, hoping to eliminate fear. While these behaviors can help momentarily, they can worsen long-term anxiety. Their avoidance strategy almost always backfires.
Instead, let thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations associated with anxiety temporarily take over, accepting the idea that anxiety is an integral part of human experience. When a wave of anxiety related to an epidemic is contagious, record or describe this experience to others, without any judgment. Resist the urge to run away from these thoughts or feelings, or get rid of your fears by educating yourself compulsively. Paradoxically, overcoming anxiety at that time helped tame it in the medium term.
Overcome your existential anxiety
What threatens our health triggers the fear that underlies all other fears: the fear of death. Faced with a reminder of their own death, people may feel themselves overwhelmed by anxiety related to maintaining their health, and disproportionately focusing on signs of illness. Try to connect with what’s meaningful to you, what’s important in your life, whether it’s spirituality, relationships with loved ones or commitment to a goal that is close to your heart. Start an important project that you have postponed, and fully reach your life choices. Focusing on or trying to find out “why” life can help you overcome the inevitable anxiety during this crisis. You are stronger than you think. It is recommended to visit sites like Kasamba to get more advice.
Don’t underestimate your endurance
Many people are afraid that they will not get out if the virus occurs at work, in their families or in their homes. They are worried about how they will deal with quarantine, closing child care centers, or losing wages. The human mind has a talent for predicting the worst. But research shows that people tend to overestimate the severity of the consequences of difficult events and, at the same time, underestimate their ability to cope with and adapt to difficult situations. Remember, you are more tenacious than you think. This can help ease your anxiety.
Don’t exaggerate threats
Of course; the virus can be dangerous, because the estimated death rate is between 1.4% and 2.3%. Therefore everyone must take all necessary precautions seriously to combat their spread. But keep in mind that humans tend to overestimate the dangers associated with unknown threats compared to those they already know, such as seasonal flu or car accidents. Constant media coverage contributes to feelings of danger, which leads to increased fear and escalation of perceived danger. To reduce anxiety related to this news, I suggest you limit the exposure to information on the corona virus to 30 minutes per day, maximum. And don’t forget that we are more anxious when we are confronted with situations that we cannot compare to known situations. The anxiety it causes, this is a vicious circle, makes things even more terrible to live.
Take care of yourself
In these difficult times, it is important to remember methods that are proven to prevent and reduce anxiety. Get enough sleep, exercise regularly, pay attention, spend time in nature and use relaxation techniques when you’re stressed. Focusing on these behaviors during the crisis we are experiencing can greatly help improve your psychological well-being and strengthen your immune system.
Get professional help if necessary
Those most affected by anxiety and related disorders may be specifically affected by this epidemic period. As a result, they may experience symptoms that interfere with their social relationships, their ability to work, or their ability to look after themselves and others. If you feel worried, seek professional help from your doctor, mental health professional and even someone engaged in spirituality. Cognitive behavioral therapy and certain medications can help treat anxiety problems effectively.
You need to know that spirituality can reduce stress!
Over the past few years, various studies have shown that spirituality helps reduce stress. Even if, for many people, talking about spirituality means talking about religion, it must be known that spirituality can in fact be lived independently of belief or religion. Without it if there were the fewest contradictions.
As such, we consider that religion is a set of beliefs and practices that are codified together by a group of individuals, who are linked to a higher power. For its part, spirituality refers to an individual’s relationship with the spirit, which can be a higher power (like a god) or just a representation of a human relationship with a metaphysical reality far greater than him.
That is why people can be religious without being spiritual. And those people can be spiritual. Without being religious. We can also meet people who live their spirituality on the margins of the religion they practice.
It must be emphasized that research has discovered the fact: spirituality helps protect against depression to the extent that it makes cerebral cortex fat. A 2014 study at Columbia University found an increase in the cerebral cortex associated with regular meditation or other spiritual or religious practices. This could explain why this activity protects against depression, especially in people who have a tendency towards disease. It is something related to feelings. You know that feelings are what we have to face every single day.
Expression of spirituality for stress management
Spiritual people have many ways to express their spirituality. They can pray, attend services, interact with like-minded people, meditate, use art or music (create or contemplate / listen), reflect on nature, etc.
Religious people, for example, find that prayer is a way to feel more connected to their god. Praying helps them feel safer, and that can help reduce stress. Meditation is said to have benefits similar to prayer, which also helps lower blood pressure and increase immunity, among other factors that help in stress management.
Prayer and meditation can bring inner peace and a feeling of calm.
Gratitude and expressing gratitude are also expressions of spirituality that help manage stress. Being grateful can reduce stressful experiences. Art or nature contemplation and artistic expression can also help control stress if they are realized based on spiritual experience, recognition.