“Am I Okay?” — A Mental Health Self Assessment While Social-Distancing
COVID-19 is here and tearing up the world by storm. There’s people getting sick left-and-right, with an alarming number of deaths associated to the virus. Damn near everything is shut down other than essential-businesses, and most of us are staying home (“Thank you” to those who are. Sincerely, a paranoid Asthmatic).
Some of us are taking on new endeavors from the safety of our home.
Some of us are on a newfound skill-building journey in efforts to stay occupied and utilize our time.
Some of us are looking at the bright-side of this pandemic.
Some of us are doing just fine.
However, some of us aren’t.
For some of us, the confinement of our homes and being forced into an unfamiliar routine is unsettling. Having our “normal” freedoms is proving rather taxing, both physically and mentally. For a lot of us, social distancing has been mentally demanding.
I’m Okay, but I’m Not Okay
Personally, I have found myself bouncing back between feeling like I’m on top of the world and feeling insignificant/worried. One minute, I am extremely motivated and continually look at “the brighter side” of this whole Coronavirus issue, like how I can make use of my time and tackle on new challenges from home. Despite not working, I’ve been able to keep myself very productive due to an abundance of newfound time. During this state, I am sincerely happy, and I feel okay.
But like the flip of a switch, I find myself embarking down the rabbit hole into the pits of my consciousness, alone to deal with my rampantly wandering thoughts.
In those moments, I feel the overwhelming pressure of the world on my shoulders. Life was already stressful to begin with and COVID-19 has only amplified my stressors. A constant sense of paranoia that normally lingers in the back of my head ends up taking full control of my emotions, inducing a dreadful feeling that can only be described as emotionally-painful. In this state, I am not okay.
This teeter-totter of emotions often leave me distraught as the negative extremity normally wins the battle over my mental health. One thing however, that continually keeps me grounded and ultimately pulls me out of my slump is self-evaluation, immediately followed by a course of action designed to keep me in a halfway decent state of peace.
To start the process of self-evaluation during these troubling times, ask yourself one simple question:
“Am I Okay?”
Remember, it’s perfectly okay not to be okay.
Evaluate How Social-Distancing is Affecting You Directly
Take a moment and think of any and all aspects of your life that is being challenged by the world today. Take note of your emotions throughout the day and how both your actions/thoughts influence them, whether you feel uplifted or feel brought down. Don’t sugarcoat anything either; be absolutely raw with yourself. Now is not the time to sweep thoughts and emotions under the rug. Keep in mind how this pandemic is affecting you financially, physically, and socially. These variables are essential in how we carry ourselves through these trials and tribulations.
When you feel good, take note of what you’re doing that makes you feel good and determine whether or not those feelings are genuine.
If you feel down, take note of what you’re doing that makes you feel down and how you’re coping
Evaluating Your Coping Mechanisms
Ask yourself this:
“Am I in a genuine state of joy in this moment, or am I using a coping mechanism as a scapegoat?”
If you are in a genuine state of joy while doing what you’re doing, keep on keeping on.
If you come to the realization that you are doing the latter, evaluate how you cope. However way, shape, or form we choose to cope, it is imperative that we acknowledge that some of our coping mechanisms is actually contributing to tearing us down. Many of us choose not to hold ourselves accountable, leading to potentially toxic forms of coping. We may not see it, but many of us, myself included, are self sabotaging our own mental health allowing us to be victims of our own demise.
Understand That Some Things are Out of Your Hands
We’ve all heard it before:
“Control what you can control.”
This pandemic is here, and most of us are incapable of finding a cure. I struggle with a longing-sense of helping others and contributing in some fashion to the betterment of these trying times. It took me a little bit to realize this, but focusing on me, working on me, and doing me from a distance of the world will indirectly benefit the rest of society. Understanding that you are in control of your own actions, which influence how you think and feel, will help get you through the madness of staying at home.
Tailoring a “Get Better” Plan
Look back at the activities/actions that made you feel genuinely well; we need to dial in on them. Ask yourself this:
“What am I currently doing that I need to change in order to feel okay?”
Now is the time of self-discovery. Now is the time for us to seek new outlets. Find something that can be beneficial to your own personal goals. Want to get back into shape? Start doing home workouts. Want to work on your creativity? Pick up that instrument that you’ve been wanting to learn. Do you simply just need/want somebody to talk to? Call that person. The choices are infinite.
Immersing ourselves in productive activities and surrounding ourselves (within reasonable means) with uplifting people with similar forward-thinking mindsets is indispensable during this time. Like the saying goes, we are a product of our environment.
Some of us will/currently need professional help. And you know what? That’s perfectly okay. If you feel like you need it, find some online counseling. Nobody can do this alone, so it is okay to find help by any means necessary.
It Gets Better, I Promise
Full disclosure: You probably won’t start feeling consistently better right away. Rome wasn’t built overnight. Through valiant efforts and consistency, your mental state will most certainly show improvement. If you want to get better, you will make the time to do and be better.
Whether or not our internal thoughts pull the strings of our actions and emotions is dependent on nobody but ourselves. Self-Isolation has provided opportune moments for self-improvement whether we know it or not. It’s up to us as to whether or not we are willing to utilize those moments.
The last step, as corny as it sounds, is manifesting your reality. It’s as easy as telling yourself things like:
“I Am Okay”
or:
“I Might Not Be Okay Right Now, but I Will Be Okay”
Wherever your mental state currently stands, just know if you start to take control, you will be more than Okay.
Resources
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration Hotline: 1–800–662-HELP (4357)
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1–800–273–8255
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1–800–799-SAFE (7233)
