We're all working now to safeguard our physical health and "flatten the curve" by staying home and limiting in-person contacts. But what about our mental well-being?
The public health response to the pandemic carries heavy psychological costs. We need to deal with them, especially if measures to protect the public — many of them executed in a slapdash way already — toughen and must be sustained for long time stretches for which people are unprepared.
Are you already feeling bored, anxious, depressed, and sad as you sit at home? Are you obsessing about coronavirus news? Worried about whether you have enough groceries and household supplies? Are you frustrated, grumpy, or angry with roomies or loved ones? Sleeping late and taking too-frequent naps? Do you find yourself going on binges, with snacks and too-big meals, or with excessive TV watching or devouring online content on a screen? Hitting the booze or other intoxicants more than you used to?
Covid-19, in medical terms, may be a viral assault on the respiratory and other body systems. But to defeat it will require our adopting winning ways for our hearts and minds, too. We will need not only physical strength but also mental and psychological resilience. Here are some ways to avoid having the virus grind down your spirit and mental well-being …
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