How to Cope with Stress and Depression during Corona Virus Outbreak

       

         We all are staying at home from March 2020 due to the global Covid 19 situation. We can't go outside. We are all stay- at home restrictions. Our job changes to work from home. some lost jobs,  some are grieving due to loss of loved ones. Children are on holidays. Online education system has arrived. Maids are on leaves. Mostly women are suffering from depression all the time. Some are being forced to spend months and months in unhappy, abusive relationships. Due to social distance we are becoming more alone, negative, hopeless, frustrated and cut off.

         How to stay fresh and how to cope with these depression and fear of virus? 

         If you constantly think about virus, virus and virus then surely it will affect your mental health then the fear of virus may become more infectious than the virus itself. So stop thinking about it. 

         Once there was a man, someone asked him If you are at your last stage how would you like to die ? He replied I would like to die instant rather than suffering from pain. Then the man brought a snake in front of him and close his eyes and stuck a needle on his leg. Can you guess what happened next ? He died instantly not because of the snake but because of fear of snake bite. In the postmortem, it is found that the poison produced is none other than by his body itself due to fear. 

 Also read : Anxiety                

         Take all the things positively. know that you are not alone facing this pandemic situations. Our life has become so fast that we never get time to think what you are doing, are you happy with that? This a pause to your running life. Isn't it ? In this time you can take care of yourself, you can give time to you, you can focus on your personal growth, meditate. 

           In this pandemic, your schedule has disturbed, sleeping too much, skipping meal or watching TV all day. Mostly teenager turns to unhealthy ways drinking too much, smoking, taking drugs, eating junk foods which lead to more worst your depression and affects your health. Break this cycle and maintain your routine. Exercise, learn new language, instrument.

          Limit your access to social media. Don't check news often, don't read news about corona. Social media will fuel negativity and fear. Take precautions. Focus on what you can control ( good hygiene ).

            You can make your connections strong with your family members, your long distance relatives, friends. You can schedule online get-togethers with group of people and can enjoy. You can play with kids, give time for your children. Gardening is also a best, you can do it at home itself.

              If you have a terrace then go and spend time there. Take photographs of nature, dance, read lots of books, learn new skills. Play indoor games, draw and paint. Listen music. Watch funny video clips. Spend time with pets. You know what hobbies are best to relieve your stress and feel energized. 

             Here I will tell you, why you feel grateful ? Yesterday I asked a food delivery boy, Why isn't he is staying at home ? He said, " we don't have any food to eat, If I stop doing this who can survive my family ? Who give money to pay for our expense ? In my family only I am who earns money. After listening to his answer shiver comes on my body. Then I realized though we all are suffering from this situation but still have food to eat and facilities at home. I am grateful. You don't know how some people are suffering  from this pandemic situations ? Be thankful.

              Lastly I want to tell you all don't feel depressed, you are not alone. Mental health is important. Take proper caution, use common sense. Stay home, stay safe.

Related : Depression

Everything You Need to Know About Depression

         

 

           Depression is a feeling of sadness and loss of interest. It is a kind of illness. It comes from the death of loved ones, family members, it might come from work stress, worry about finances, breakup or from the feeling that no one is for you, no one loves you, students not getting results from their efforts,  postnatal depression, troubled relationships, divorce.

          How do we come to know that we are in depression or not ? There are some symptoms which are present in these kind of people those signs are :

• Overthinking, 
• Trouble in concentrating, 
• Memory issues, 
• Constant worrying, 
• Headache,
•  Insomnia, 
• Frustration,
•  Lack of interest, 
• Anxiety ( panic attacks), 
• Isolation.

           WHO estimates that at around 450 million people currently suffer from this condition. At it worst, depression can lead to suicide. Over 800000 people die due to suicide every year. From 10 year boys to 50 year old adults suffer from this mental health problem. 

           If you could see the problem is lying in you, you only have to find it and fix. Our daily life is too fast that we merely get time to eat, to sleep. We are running behind money, we forget if we loose our mental health, what's the use of the money we earn. Friends I want you to know depression, mental health are becoming serious health issues in these days and if you couldn't realize it in initial stages, it may lead life threatening over the period of time in future.

            What can you do ? Here are some techniques to manage your thoughts, emotions, discomforts, behaviour.

•   First in order to solve  problem, you have to understand the root cause, what is the problem actually.
•   If you tell yourself you don't want to think a certain thought, you know what, that is the first think comes in your mind. This is the nature of human mind.
•     Overthinking is dangerous. It affects your health, you may sometimes lose your weight. There are millions of people on this planet and they all have different views, opinions. You can't control other people way of thinking. Practice mindfulness. Pay attention to present moment. Don't overthink about other's negative comments,  negative criticism. Stop judging yourself negatively for feeling anxious. Don't add more complexity to the situation.
•    Best effective remedy is keep yourself busy. Try tiring your mind that mean give no time to your brain to think anything negative. Exercise and medication relieves your stress level.
•    Music is the best therapy to treat your depression. Listen classical, calm music. Happy music lifts your mood as when you are happy endomorphins secreted and this keep you blood pressure under control.
•    Smell the soil, get your hands dirty in soil. In soil, a bacterium namely Mycobacterium vaccae found, which makes you feel happy as it produces serotonin which is an antidepressant drug.
•   Avoid your smartphone as much as you can. Have face to face conversation than on social media. Have some true friends who knows you, supports you rather than many fake friends. Do you know if you can cut your screen time by 25%, you will really see huge difference in your sleep. It's not done instantly but if you could do regularly, you will gradually get better results.
•   Keeping a journal helps you on which things you waste your time, what do I have to be grateful for ? How many hours of sleep you gets each night ? Write down this in that journal, you will get an idea about how you are doing.
•    Go to bed early and wake up early and at the same time. Before going to bed, reserve some time to read books, to do something which makes you feel calm and relax. Adequate sleep is important to proper functioning of our brain. Sleeping or depression pills works by balancing chemicals in the brain that affect mood and emotion. This pills help you sleep better, improve your mood. But don't take without doctor's recommendations.
•   Communication is the best way to reduce some levels of stress. Talk to your close friend or relatives that supports you. 
•   There is an old saying, Birds of feather flock together. In schools, colleges you can see that similar kind of people, similar nature or similar thinking people find eachother or people in group become a same over time. So surround yourself with positive people that always talk about good ideas, good habits good health. If you live in the negative environment, chance is higher that you may feel negative all the time.
•   Participate in cultural activities, join clubs, play a lot. It is seen that people that participated in these kinds of activities have lower level of depression.
•   Laugh loudly, there is no need of money. Laughing reduce chances of heart attack.
•   Learn emotional intelligence. Learn how to interact effectively at work, discriminate between different emotions.
•  It is seen that teenager as well as adults turns to unhealthy ways of eating, drinking, taking drugs, smoking. This only lead your depression to worst. Eat only healthy and fresh foods such as Calcium rich foods, omega-3- fatty acid, fibre rich food, vitamins and proteins, whole grains, fresh fruits and green vegetables.
• Many people harm themselves, think about suicide. No, this is not a solution. Don't do that. Look at your mom, she kept you in her womb for 9 months, she gave you birth by tolerating unbearable pain. Your parents raised you, they work to fulfill your desire, your education. Inspite of all these if you get such a kind of thoughts please seek a medical help. Ask to a mental health expert.                      

                 There are four ways to cope with depression. This will help you to understand what is happening to you and expand healthy options to cope up with depression.           

      1) Medication, Relaxation, Stress and anger management
       2) Talk therapy
       3) Cognitive behavioural therapy
       4) Antidepressants, Anxiolytic, nerve pain medication.               

       

Thank you for reading this. If this note touched you, write down in comment sections. Share with all, you don't know maybe someone around you suffering from depression.