Maintaining your mental health now
A significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will not just be on physical health but also global mental health. This problem should not be underestimated. People who might normally have good mental health may struggle because of new stresses and anxieties. Those of us who struggle need to be particularly vigilant. Fortunately, this is getting some significant attention. An example of expert advice is here.
I want to give my own non-expert personal perspective, just to keep the issue on the agenda, and to process my own thoughts and experiences.
Don't underestimate the problem, either for yourself or for others.
Practice the basics: diet, exercise, sleep and connecting to others.
Depending on your situation this may require some flexibility, creativity, and self-discipline, particularly if you are in self-isolation.
Limit screen time.
Limit news and social media updates.
Turn off most of the notifications on your phone.
I am trying to limit myself to two sessions on news sites each day. I also try and read some articles that are not about the pandemic. The ``news'' has become very predictable in Australia because we are roughly one week behind the USA and two weeks behind Italy.
The medical news goes: X positive tests, Y illnesses, Z deaths, with X, Y, and Z increasing exponentially.
The political news follows the pattern: government proposes modest measures (shut-downs and economic stimulus packages) that steadily increase to something like we have never seen since WWII.
The economic news follows a pattern too.
Limit discussion of the pandemic.
There is a natural tendency to spend all our time talking about it. There is some scary stuff happening, everyone we know is being affected (but in many different ways), there is lots of misinformation and incompetence, and some fascinating biology and social science. Don't avoid the subject. But, talk about other things too. My wife have to keep working on this.
Accept the situation, adapt, and move on.
Grieve your losses. Some of what you hoped to do in the next six months is not going to happen. Give yourself (and those who work for you) time to adapt, whether it is setting up a home office or putting a course online.
Be sensitive to the way the pandemic is affecting different people in very different ways, both in the short- and long-term. For some, it will probably be a minor hiccup in their life trajectory. Some are sitting at home bored and asked for recommendations as to what Netflix shows to binge on and how to have a good virtual cocktail party. Others are trying to prevent the collapse of their organisation while working at their dining table with three kids running around like crazy, and their spouse working overtime in a medical clinic. Many faculty have been asked at short notice to put their whole courses online. The level of disruption for experimentalists and theorists is significantly different.
For some, the pandemic may lead to loss of loved ones, unemployment, or bankruptcy. For others, well ``the stock market always bounces back.''
Given my mental health history, some may be concerned about me, so let me say a little about how I am doing. This year my mental health has been the best it has been for several years. Two years ago I transitioned to a half-time research-only position at the university (more on that another time). I am very thankful don't have to rapidly put a course online. I am working from home and teleconferencing with students, postdocs, and colleagues. That is going well. I am an introvert and find overseas travel stressful so being forced to abandon some meetings, both local and international, is actually a blessing. My main stress has been trying to get some others to be pro-active rather than reactive. I get frustrated at community, university, and political leaders not fully appreciating the gravity of the situation and acting slowly. I have to limit my level engagement, focusing on my sphere of influence, not my circle of concern.
Any thoughts and suggestions?
Feel free to share your own experiences.
I want to give my own non-expert personal perspective, just to keep the issue on the agenda, and to process my own thoughts and experiences.
Don't underestimate the problem, either for yourself or for others.
Practice the basics: diet, exercise, sleep and connecting to others.
Depending on your situation this may require some flexibility, creativity, and self-discipline, particularly if you are in self-isolation.
Limit screen time.
Limit news and social media updates.
Turn off most of the notifications on your phone.
I am trying to limit myself to two sessions on news sites each day. I also try and read some articles that are not about the pandemic. The ``news'' has become very predictable in Australia because we are roughly one week behind the USA and two weeks behind Italy.
The medical news goes: X positive tests, Y illnesses, Z deaths, with X, Y, and Z increasing exponentially.
The political news follows the pattern: government proposes modest measures (shut-downs and economic stimulus packages) that steadily increase to something like we have never seen since WWII.
The economic news follows a pattern too.
Limit discussion of the pandemic.
There is a natural tendency to spend all our time talking about it. There is some scary stuff happening, everyone we know is being affected (but in many different ways), there is lots of misinformation and incompetence, and some fascinating biology and social science. Don't avoid the subject. But, talk about other things too. My wife have to keep working on this.
Accept the situation, adapt, and move on.
Grieve your losses. Some of what you hoped to do in the next six months is not going to happen. Give yourself (and those who work for you) time to adapt, whether it is setting up a home office or putting a course online.
Be sensitive to the way the pandemic is affecting different people in very different ways, both in the short- and long-term. For some, it will probably be a minor hiccup in their life trajectory. Some are sitting at home bored and asked for recommendations as to what Netflix shows to binge on and how to have a good virtual cocktail party. Others are trying to prevent the collapse of their organisation while working at their dining table with three kids running around like crazy, and their spouse working overtime in a medical clinic. Many faculty have been asked at short notice to put their whole courses online. The level of disruption for experimentalists and theorists is significantly different.
For some, the pandemic may lead to loss of loved ones, unemployment, or bankruptcy. For others, well ``the stock market always bounces back.''
Given my mental health history, some may be concerned about me, so let me say a little about how I am doing. This year my mental health has been the best it has been for several years. Two years ago I transitioned to a half-time research-only position at the university (more on that another time). I am very thankful don't have to rapidly put a course online. I am working from home and teleconferencing with students, postdocs, and colleagues. That is going well. I am an introvert and find overseas travel stressful so being forced to abandon some meetings, both local and international, is actually a blessing. My main stress has been trying to get some others to be pro-active rather than reactive. I get frustrated at community, university, and political leaders not fully appreciating the gravity of the situation and acting slowly. I have to limit my level engagement, focusing on my sphere of influence, not my circle of concern.
Any thoughts and suggestions?
Feel free to share your own experiences.
Thank you for bringing in particular this one up: "Grieve your losses. Some of what you hoped to do in the next six months is not going to happen." As a theoretician, on a practical side of work flow, the whole situation hits me much less than many others, moreover, I don't live alone adn don't have small kids, so I was getting to think that I am "absolutely fine" in home isolation. And yet even those of us not hit badly are affected too, and indeed it's important to accept it, while appreciating the effort and struggle of all the others having much harder time. Also, happy to hear you are doing well!
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