Tele-health expert | 10 Tips to Managing Coronavirus Anxiety and Social Isolation

Tele-health expert | 10 Tips to Managing Coronavirus Anxiety and Social Isolation

Dealing with the unknown can be very scary. This pandemic happening around the globe has brought feelings of stress, anxiety and fear in our lives. In times of high distress, it’s common that our system suffers chemical alteration. A crisis, like this one we are facing, has modified our routine and daily activities, and can potentially set us up for an emotional rollercoaster. Feeling constantly afraid or worried, can affect the natural flow of the body and compromise our quality of life. Below you can find some ideas on how to manage anxiety in time of crisis:

• Try to keep a healthy routine as much as possible. Continue to engage with friends and family by phone and video. Connecting in moments of crisis is essential to handle stress.
• Build an imaginary calm and secure place in your mind and use it as a resource, to help keep the mind relaxed in moments of fear and anxious thoughts.
• Change negative thoughts to positive ones, it will help you to feel more in control of what happens in your mind.
• Practice muscle relaxation, breathing techniques and meditation and let your body calm down.
• Mindfulness can help to increase awareness about thoughts and feelings without participating in them. Observe, notice and determine the response that you want to create.
• Allow thoughts to come and go, as if you are watching clouds passing by or a train going by fast in a station.
• Limit time watching the news, try to disconnect after 15-30 minute news cycle. Prolonged periods of stress does not allow us to make wise decisions.
• Avoid relying on anxious thoughts. When one is in prolonged period of fear or distress, their thought process becomes impaired and are unable to think assertively.
• Build a routine that keeps you busy and active. Use your time wisely. Begin that home project that you have been planning for months and never found time to start.
• Enjoy time with your family and build fun games and activities together.

Sometimes, anxiety and fear get difficult to manage.

Please, reach out to a Mental Health Counselor who specializes in anxiety. If you are trying to not leave your home and to avoid social contact due to the COVID19, many counselors offer phone, online and zoom sessions. Remember, the fight, flight or freeze is a natural body response to stress when dealing with unknown or life-threatening situations, such as a pandemic or crisis. Resilience is the ability to see beyond the fear and to develop a new and healthy pathway to deal with difficulties. Try not to identify yourself with anxious thoughts. Anxiety does not define you; it is what is happening to you and not who you are. Slow down and allow awareness to manage your stress and create a healthier life.

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AUTHOR: Anna Vita, M.S.  – has a Master’s of Science in Counseling Psychology and is an accomplished multi-cultural (speaks English, Espanol, Portugues) Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern (over 2000+ hours of mental health counseling experience) working with couples, teens, young adults and women empowerment issues in Orlando and East Orlando Florida!  Anna Vita can be reached at (407) 248-0030 for phone and video sessions.

Anna Vita

Anna takes on a deep personal vow to herself with each of her clients, and to provide them with the most honest, empathetic and genuine care. Anna is in the professional setting of Total Life Counseling and treats each client as if they are the only client. Her counseling employs an unconditional regard that is nonjudgmental and non-directive, where the therapist takes on a posture that is empathetic towards each client’s own experience. Anna utilizes the Holistic Approach as a complimentary intervention, to understand the totality of each client’s own desires, in the therapeutic setting.

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