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Chances are, this year hasn’t looked anything like you expected. COVID-19 has affected everyone, and it’s important to check in with ourselves. Even if we’re healthy, our loved ones are safe, and our job is stable, this pandemic can overwhelm anyone — the world is full of uncertainty, change, and new demands that we’ve never faced. It’s important to be kind to ourselves and mindful of our bodies and emotions — even if we’re not physically sick, it’s important to take care of our mental health.
During uncertain and unfamiliar life experiences, one of the most common reactions is stress. This year is a time of major change, and there are many strains for our mental health:
Local and national governments have issued orders to shelter. For many of us, this means cutting ourselves off from friends and family, losing our routines, reorganizing or losing our work, and straining relationships in our households. For some, this means being stuck in an unsafe situation.
While sheltering is difficult, it can be equally stressful to leave the house. Tasks that used to be simple like grocery shopping may now seem scary. Whether it’s anxiety over proximity to strangers or touching objects in public, going outside can be overwhelming at the moment.
Catching and carrying COVID-19 is a large stress for everyone — it’s scary to become sick, and perhaps scarier for our loved ones to fall ill. Fear of loss, of infecting others, of losing our health, or dying are all common.
Many have lost hours or entire jobs during COVID-19. In a time of financial recession, this might be scarier than normal — future employment isn’t as certain and many are under financial distress, a stressor at any time in life.
Many continue to work outside the home due to financial need, while others want to help the community— both are placed at higher risk for infection. These workers may be experiencing a high level of stress over getting sick, infecting loved ones or abuse received from the public.
In 2020, many have become stay-at-home parents and tutors. Not only is this a large transition, for many who now work at home, there’s less time than ever to get everything done and more on their plate than before.
College graduates’ plans, in particular, have been affected by the virus. Many lost out on graduations, were forced to leave campus abruptly, and have had job or internship offers taken away. Others have had to cancel weddings, vacations, and other large life events they’d planned for and invested in.
No one, at the moment, is certain about the future. It’s unclear if stay-at-home orders will continue, how long a vaccination will take, what the economy will do, and what governments will decide about border control and aid. Most of us are unable to plan far into the future or to answer stressful questions about what will happen next.
While stress is one of the most common emotions during a pandemic, it looks different for everyone. There are many reactions we might experience, whether it’s one, two, or several:
This is not a comprehensive list—there might be other symptoms you’re experiencing. COVID-19 is affecting everyone, and there’s no right or wrong way to react.
The future isn’t certain. Even after everything settles, may of us may deal with the fear of a new epidemic. Many will be deal with the repercussions farther into the future, experiencing long-term effects; this many present as depression, grief, PTSD, anxiety, substance abuse, and violence, all of which can manifest differently. Even with a vaccination, the healing process will be slow and gradual for many. We are all experiencing loss of some kind and this can take time to process.
Although the future is uncertain, however, there are steps that we take to cope and heal during and the pandemic and after.
One of the first steps when dealing with trauma and grief is to acknowledge and reflect upon what’s happened. This pandemic can feel overwhelming, and it’s affected many aspects of our lives. To move on and integrate these experiences healthily into our identities, it’s important to pause and consider what’s happened, how it’s affected us, and how we’d like to move into the future.
Life won’t look the same for a while, if ever. COVID-19 has changed the way we live, for at least the time being. To move forward and to heal, it’s important to slowly integrate familiar activities that we’re comfortable with into our lives. While the world around us may have changed, much of what we loved doing before will be the same. Slowly starting up our hobbies, interests, and other parts of our routines again can help us heal and reestablish who we were before the pandemic. Creating a routine can give us back direction and a sense of normalcy.
While we’ve had to cut ourselves off from our friends and neighbors, it’s important to reach out to those around us. While we may be physically distancing, it’s important to emotionally support one another, even if it’s over the phone or Zoom. Farther into the future, rebuilding our social lives may not happen immediately. It’s okay if it takes time or heightens anxiety. Reaching out, however, helping and supporting our neighbors, and creating a network can help us all heal and move on together.
Whether we already have a therapist we’ve seeing for years or have never had a session, mental health treatment can help us heal. Dealing with so much change and emotional trauma isn’t easy to handle alone. Speaking with a professional can help us understand how we’ve been effected and how to handle our grief, stress, and trauma. These are big times and big emotions, and there are people who can help us cope with them.
Processing and working through the social, physical, and mental health impacts won’t take a day or even a month. While we’re all in different places, grief, PTSD, stress, depression, and anxiety are natural reactions to this complex emergency.
In our normal lives, these issues all take time to work through—in such an unfamiliar situation, it may take longer. While some people seem to be thriving or healing faster, it’s important to be kind to ourselves and understanding. There is no timeline for COVID-19 or ourselves. These experiences will take time to heal from and to integrate into our lives. It’s important to give ourselves permission to not immediately bounce back. Instead, we should focus on taking steps like reaching out, rediscovering familiar activities, and giving ourselves the space and time we need as we move into the future.
If you are interested in finding a therapist, consider contacting Healing Within, an online platform that provides counseling and emotional support. Through the use of private videoconferencing software or the telephone, I can provide therapy for a variety of challenges you may be experiencing. Reach out today and begin the journey to a more peaceful state of mind.
Cynthia is the Founder of Healing Within, A Licensed Clinical Social Worker Corporation. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing online counseling/therapy services for adults or teens (13 and older) who reside anywhere within the state of California.
Cynthia also offers consultation services for nonprofit organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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