HOW COVID-19 IS AFFECTING OUR PSYCHOLOGY:
“Being a social animal and not being able to socialize is disturbing us deeply and unconsciously. This social isolation is leading us to mental and psychological complexities.” (Anonymous)
In this era of science, technology, and medical advancement we are facing a unique kind of virus known as Coronavirus or COVID-19. It is unique in the sense that it causes symptoms mostly like that of common flue or TB, its vaccine is yet to be discovered and has both symptomatic and asymptomatic carriers, thus spreading at a reckless rate.
The rising death toll and undiscovered cure, lead us only to the preventive measures, we can take to stop this pandemic. These measurements are being taken on the national level to stop the spread of this novel virus. The action taken by the government and the perplexity of the whole situation itself has some adverse effects on our psychology.
Psychological effects on the public:
Amid this situation, the Government of many countries has announced lockdown and social distancing, that are affecting each individual differently. There is an urgent need for psychology research and a survey on it.
Some plus point of this lockdown and social distancing are:
· Some people are having good family time.
· Some are becoming more creative, others are flourishing their weaker points.
· People are more socially engaged due to excessive time.
· Some are focusing on spirituality.
But besides of having pros of stopping this infectious disease and being beneficial for growing minds, there are some serious cons of it on our society and economy as well.
· Obstruction in regular activities, isolation from loved ones, disturbing routine, and halt in goal achievement is causing mental health crises and distortion of normal positive behavior.
· Downfall of economy, epic unemployment, and future uncertainty causing unpredictable mindset changes especially in the middle and lower class.
These effects are causing a change in the behavioral response of people toward the present situation. Some people are mentally distressed and undergoing abnormal fear of the whole situation termed as Coronaphobia. While some are irritated by the whole situation, becoming belligerent and going against preventive measures.
Both the aggressive and submissive attitude toward the situation is due to either overestimating or underestimating ones coping abilities respectively, thus ultimately resulting in panic.
Julie Pike, a clinical psychologist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, who specializes in anxiety disorders, states “Anxiety is mother nature’s way of trying to project us by pushing us to resolve uncertainty and figure out a solution”
People are not fearing the disease itself but the fear of the unknown. There is the term “Behavioral immunity” introduced by psychological scientist Mark Schaller in which a person detects the potential presence of the disease-causing parasite in their environment, and engage in behavior that prevents him from contact with those objects and individuals. This psychological concept is one of the reasons behind people being more conservative, conformist, tribalistic, and harsher to strangers, ultimately resulting in racism and social unrest.
Role of media:
Though media, whether it’s a social or mainstream media, has a great role in presenting current situation by streaming global updates but continuously increasing figures of infected people, high death tolls, crisis emerging as a result of slack businesses and demoting economy; all this relentless bombing is spreading fear at a faster pace than viral pandemic itself. Survey results from countries like the USA, Russia, India, etc. have shown that media has exaggerated the extent of the outbreak.
The persistent sense of threat leads to a trauma state, which according to a Dutch philosopher Ciano Aydin is a violation of familiar expectations about someone’s life and the world, sending them into a state of extreme confusion and uncertainty.
And this uncertainty is fueling mental anguish, hopelessness, mood swings, and other aspects of harsh behavior and ill mood which on a longer span is injurious to one’s life. Researches have shown that this contagion fear has resulted in judgmental attitude, xenophobia, racism, and depression.
Some false news portals are airing false news, superstitions, and self-medication procedures which is one of the causes of Corona-phobia. This load of misinformation is misleading many people.
Psychology of frontline medical worker:
Apart from the public, the psychology of those who are front line fighter in all this situation is or will be affected, some medical workers will cope with this challenging time while others will suffer from psychological stress. Mental health issues of the medical workers are also critical for the management and prevention of pandemic.
There are many causes and consequences of the psychological issues many medical professionals are facing.
Causes:
· Uncertainty fuels anxiety in human nature. Similarly, amid this crisis, medical professionals are facing the uncertainty of consequences because they don’t have adequate medical facilities and equipment and a load of work and responsibility is increasing day by day.
According to Wendy Dean, a psychiatrist, and co-founder of non-profit Moral injury of health care states that in the case of this pandemic, prolonged uncertainty is compounded by moral anguish health care professionals face when they don’t have adequate resources to treat critically ill patients. This leads to moral injury which hinders the physician’s ability to care for their patients.
· Research concluded that the main predisposing factor is isolation from loved ones and family and a sense of being a continuous threat to them. They are also facing the upheaval of social and economic life along with us.
· They are facing a great load of work with all humanity eyeing upon them and increased expectations. The confinement to work along with the increasing work pressure, irritating and unfortunate noise of pandemic updates and being cut out from the outside world is injurious to their psychology.
· Wearing a whole load of protection i.e. Personal protective equipment (PPE) results in physical discomfort.
· There are self-risk issues as they are dealing with a flood of Corona patients on regular bases. They have to remain safe from high potential diseases. Majorly this stress of self-protection is on the medical workers working in quarantine wards.
· Being under an emergency for a long period is itself very injurious to mental health. A clinical health psychologist in the UK namely Dorothy Frizelle said that people who notice more would hear more and then in turn read more which ultimately can be interpreted in a threatening way.
· Another great trouble that is hindering medical workers’ effort is a load of fibs and gossips, which are misleading and confusing the general public.
· The short supply of equipment and resources in comparison to the number of patients is one of the major reasons because of which our medical workers can’t fully render their services. This is the main cause of moral injury they are suffering from. G. Richard Holt, an otolaryngologist and bioethicist at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio explains it as, “We’re trained in treating one patient at a time, but in the worst of an epidemic, you have to think about the greatest good for the greatest number”.
Consequences:
Many Experts predict that taken together, these traumatic effects of a pandemic will reverberate long after the virus itself is contained. Following are some consequences of the events and situations discussed above:
· This unpredictable and uncertain situation has put everyone in shock and unknown danger especially our frontline fighters as this pandemic is severely affecting them because of their excessive exposure to the infectious virus. Unfortunately, several medical frontline workers have died from this novel virus globally.
· Despite all the medical staff is facing increased workload and mental burden but the sense of self-risk is causing severe mental disorder and personalized trauma especially in doctors and nurses deputed in quarantine wards. This acute stress can be seen in their behavior i.e. strictly adhering to the infection control measures, including wearing masks more frequently than recommended.
· They are suffering from mood swings, insomnia, stress anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disease (PTSD).
· Being a transmission vector for their loved ones is making them anxious, they are also facing social, economic, and financial hardships along with us. As a result of all this, they are also suffering from Corona-phobia.
· Moral injuries are contributing to eccentricity in normal emotional, psychological, and social functioning which are correlated with the symptoms of PTSD due to lack of therapeutic support.
There is also no flexibility of time for medical workers to seek mental health therapy amid this crisis. Thus, it is crucial to take immediate action for the psychological health of medical workers as the medical profession is already among the high suicide-related professions. Experts say that when acute medical crises will end, a mental health crisis will begin for which we need a mental health system that can fulfill the need of our population.
On surveying 1,257 physicians and nurses during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in China, it was found that about 50% of respondents reported symptoms of depression, 44% reported symptoms of anxiety and 34% reported insomnia.
Prevention against psychological issues:
Researchers say they are going to be some serious aftermath of this crisis, but if somehow we can attain the social reconnection in this pandemic while maintaining physical distance, we can stop not only the pandemic spread but the hallmarks of psychological crisis impacted on society.
Some steps can help us to elevate these mental complexities. Some of them are listed below:
· Reaching out to our loved ones and friends by using online video calls, simple calls, or even messaging can elevate the social isolation stress. Apps like Skype, Zoom, and Facetime are helping us achieve the social connection we have lost due to physical isolation during the pandemic. Some destressing apps can help us channelize our emotions.
· We can use online platforms for seeking virtual assistance from medical health professionals, as well as there are also some services that are offering free therapy to health professionals and other front line fighters.
· Stress-reducing techniques, like deep breathing, yoga, repetitive prayers, meditation, body scan, guided imagery, tai chi, etc. are the best ways to soothe our mental burden.
· The unpredictability of the present situation is disturbing the human mind. By controlling and maintaining our daily routine structure we can reinforce the analogy and certainty of our life.
· By ignoring the red herring and listening only to reliable resources like WHO, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, or some major media for Coronavirus updates can prevent you from confusion and skepticism.
· Also we should limit our exposure to media. The WHO’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has also encouraged people to check the news from reliable resources only twice a day.
· We should practice excellent hygiene and practice social distancing to our best to make ourselves, our family, and our community safe. Eating healthy, taking sound sleep, and exercising keep us positive, as good nutrition, good movement and proper rest help us to relieve our mind, soul, and body. The study says it is safe to jog, walk, or do cycling while maintaining social distancing rules.
· We shouldn’t smoke or drink alcohol as it is injurious to health. Research shows smoking increase the risk of Coronavirus.
· We should play our part in our community by being proactive in our social circle, giving moral support and donations to help needy and deserving people financially as this crisis has also affected everyone financially. This results in our mental and spiritual boosting.
· Amid this situation Govt. and authorities should fulfill the responsibility to help out there people to live out this situation without any medical and psychological ailment.
Our leader should calm down the public by negating false fear, appreciate the hard work of their front line fighter, and puzzle out any difficulty slowing down their work at the state level.
· Also a psychological trauma management service should be provided at the government level to the front line fighters. It should reach workers via the internet or telephonic conversation to address their mental health problems, also a psychological consultant should periodically meet service staff to listen to their experiences and hard situations and do catharsis by encouragement.
· Government should make a forum to share authentic updates and preventive measure to relieve the stress of public and medical workers
· To avoid economical crises and business loss, work from home should be appreciated. Similarly, the student’s time should be saved by online educational classes from their respective educational institutes.
Gratitude is what upraise man from dark and deep valley of distress and agony to heights of optimism and sanguineness. So in this time of crisis, gratification is what we need to uplift our morals, we should recognize the positive aspects of this situation in our lives and ways to cope it handsomely. One should remember that every night ends with bright sunshine and likewise, our scientists, medical workers, and all other front line workers that are working continuously in this pandemic to stop it from spreading will be victorious one day and till that day we should support them over there hard efforts by following their guidelines.
It is not some kind of curse or punishment. It is the situation that is revealing our loose points as a society, as a nation even as a human being. We should use this extra time to reflect on our weaknesses and flaws to strengthen ourselves and to set our lives straight.
