Time to make the unconscious conscious
Just a few months ago, who could have predicted that the world would be staring down the barrel of a spiraling health predicament and economic crisis unlike any witnessed in an eternity? Now, in a society gripped by the terror of a foraying virus, mental health is emerging as a pressing concern.
The Coronavirus pandemic has made people conscious about innumerable factors that they have been overlooking in their normal lives before this virus showed up. People have always been occupied with their work, be it their jobs, education, families, and what not! This virus has made us aware of the numerous things that we wouldn’t have noticed earlier.
Over the years we’ve been ignorant of our health and mental well-being because we were so busy and pre-occupied by the workload and daily commitments. Stress, anxiety, deadlines, depression, etc. have always overpowered our lives without us actually rejoicing in the evanescence of life. For a pile of cash, we constraint and situate ourselves in dubious and in the worst condition. Often there is no coming back from this.
The pivotal question escalating is- When if ever, would life return to a semblance of what it used to be before the pandemic hit the world? Within the torrent of mixed messages about the science, whether it was real or fake? What might the post-lockdown plan for containing the virus look like? All of this played on an endless daily new reporting, amplified by rising figures on contagion, hospitalizations, and deaths around the world and regionally.
The response of the media and governments to the global COVID-19 epidemic has fueled anxiety. The dramatic manner in which the term “pandemic” was announced by the WHO after weeks of watching the epidemic progress around the world was a spine-chilling moment. Apocalyptic messaging about millions of dead bodies scattered around our cities followed, even though experts had identified vulnerable populations -elderly or chronically ill, and those living in public facilities like nursing homes.
As it is known there is no vaccine in India yet for the Covid-19 virus, even though scientists and biochemists have been painstakingly working on it. In spite of being aware of the fact that having a strong immunity and social distancing is the only way to protect themselves at the moment. Many people have situated themselves into conditions where they were busy minting money which is now of no use to cure them. There has been an insufficiency of ICU wards and ventilators in medical facilities. Private hospitals are not accessible to everyone due to their exorbitant expenses. Government hospitals are completely swarmed with infected patients and now there are not many options left.
But is that all? Is Covid the only reason for people dying? We hear in news daily about the rapidly increasing death rates in India due to the virus. But are you aware of the deaths because of stress and depression? Our preoccupied lives never gave us a chance to think about our own selves. Did we ever include the time to think about our mental health in our work schedules or even consider it significant? Have you ever been in a state of mind where you didn’t feel like being happy, you didn’t want to talk to anyone, didn’t want to go out, didn’t want to eat. Imagining being in that state for a prolonged duration, all feel like doing is to cry and overthink about petty issues. Well, that is depression and it leads to an end.
Anticipatorily, episodes of anxiety, fearfulness, sleep apnea, irritability, and feeling hopelessness are far and wide. These are mostly our rational subconscious responses to the extraordinary realities that we are being faced with. But the economic crisis, widening social inequalities, the relentless uncertainty about surges of the epidemic still to unfold, and the emotional impact of social distancing policies continue to bite deeper into our mental health. It may even be followed by a rise in clinically significant mental illnesses and suicides.
Unemployment, poverty, and indebtedness are strongly linked with mental health issues. The profound social inequality in India, coupled with its deeply polarized society, and fragmented health care system, is a lethal recipe for a similar surge of despair on this occasion.
Prominent findings suggest that the periodic lockdowns and the focused attention of health care service providers to cope up with this one virus have seriously disrupted mental health care in many parts of the world. Access to mental health care — including vital continuing care — has been unavailable for many people undergoing new-onset episodes of depression and anxiety, or aggravation of pre-existing mental health problems. In India, the coronavirus crisis has been particularly hard for mental health patients and hospitals. An already overextended and under-resourced mental healthcare system has unraveled during the pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic, the uncertainty of when will it blow over, or whether all of this will ever be over, has changed us. Yes, these are truly difficult times. But we are not alone, the entire world is together in it.
Here’s a checklist that helps me maintain a positive outlook towards life in these trying times:
- Try to step outside at least once a day- go out to your garden or walk up and down your driveway or go out onto your balcony and enjoy the fresh air.
- Trying a digital detox might help you switch off from work, and utilize those hours to spend quality time with your family, or do the things you want to do.
- Focus on the silver linings-staying at home can improve productivity, curtail distractions, lessen stress, increase work satisfaction, lower the time and cost spent on traveling, hence giving you a greater sense of control over your day.
- Stay connected with friends and co-workers by setting up virtual or phone meetings frequently.
- Setting up a routine and structure for your workday — create boundaries between ‘work time’ and ‘home time’. Create a specific place in your home where you work (try avoiding your bedroom).
- Other activities like exercising, meditation, getting a good night’s sleep, and eating well, including many more might help you manage stress.
Let’s keep our spirits up because a cheerful and optimistic outlook can be the light that guides us through the darkest tunnels.
