Contracting COVID and isolating at home may be a lonely, frightening, and traumatic experience for many of us.
It might be considerably more challenging for people who have a pre-existing mental disorder.
The following ideas are provided to help you in caring for your mental health if you have COVID and are isolated at home.
Remember The Fundamentals
When living in a period of immense uncertainty and peril, it may be difficult to remember and put into practice basic health techniques.
- If you are isolated at home with COVID, it is critical that you:
- Use paracetamol or ibuprofen to treat fever and other symptoms such as aches, pains, and sore throat.
- Keep a healthy diet
- Maintain your hydration consumption, especially if you have a fever.
- Stop exercising for at least 10 days, and then gradually resume activity depending on the severity of your symptoms. Ask your GP if you have any concerns about returning to exercise.
- Deep breathing may help lung function and keep you calm throughout isolation and recuperation, but only after consulting with your doctor.
- Use mindfulness to help you deal with the unavoidable worry that comes with sickness and loneliness.
- Find diversions such as reading, watching movies, or completing a creative activity to divert your mind from focusing on concern (this is particularly important for children)
- And maintain contact with friends and family, either online or via phone.
It is critical to keep track of your COVID symptoms.
To help with this, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners provides a symptom diary.
Alternatively, you may use the Healthdirect symptom checklist to determine if you need medical attention.
If you live alone, you should establish arrangements for someone to contact you on a frequent basis to ensure that you are doing well.
Some Avoidable Coping Mechanisms
It’s reasonable that individuals may resort to drugs and alcohol, unhealthy eating, gambling, or other addictions to cope with psychological pain during times of fear and uncertainty, such as while alone at home with COVID.
These tactics may provide temporary relief from stress.
However, they have the potential to exacerbate mental health concerns in the long run.
It’s also vital to prevent “doom scrolling,” which is the inclination to keep scrolling through unpleasant news on your phone even if it’s sad, demoralizing, or depressing.
If mainstream or social media has become detrimental to your mental health, you may choose to discontinue it.
It’s been especially difficult for people suffering from mental problems.
The COVID epidemic has made it even more harder to live with mental illness.
Many people have found the previous several years to be difficult and draining.
People suffering from mental disorders and other chronic ailments have had to modify their usual management tactics in order to cope, including transferring treatment and certain types of counseling online.
Recovery and treatment of mental illness often entail activities such as exercise, good social contact, and therapy, all of which may be restricted owing to COVID limitations, budgetary constraints, and personnel shortages.
Acute services, such as hospitals and primary care, are straining to fulfill demand.
Isolation may be especially challenging for persons who do not have a safe and secure place to live.
People who have experienced domestic abuse may find it more difficult to seek treatment because they may not feel secure dealing with health professionals in their homes.
Children are more likely to be harmed if they live in a home where there is domestic violence.
When schools or daycare facilities are closed, they may have no secure place to go, so family, friends, and agencies like Kids Helpline play a crucial role in assisting children.
