Anxiety Disorder During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dr Priya R Nair, Consultant Psychiatrist

These days, we all have to accept the anxiety inherent in living in the time of the coronavirus pandemic and COVID-19. If there was a way to dispel all anxious feelings, I’d tell you, but there isn’t. The one exception might be someone who could summon such a degree of denial that they carry on as if everything was normal. And that, as I’m sure you can see, would prove to be very, very unwise.

Anxiety helps us prepare to respond in a more adaptive and healthy way. Some people find it possible to tolerate some degree of discomfort and can manage their anxiety in a healthy manner. Often that’s because some people have done well under this kind of challenge already, albeit in very different contexts. Life has a way of requiring this. Yet other people particularly people who have anxiety disorders may understandably be having a great deal of trouble coping.

Stress and Anxiety in the time of COVID 19:

COVID 19 pandemic, people are having more anxiety disorders as they got more reasons to be stressed about. The fatality rate of disease is increasing day by day, the threat of being affected by the virus has become a fear of almost every person. There is a fear of losing jobs, the uncertainty of the future, fear of running out of food and other essential things during the lockdown, the loneliness during the lockdown, the threat of losing your dear ones due to COVID 19 is making people worrisome.

People from the weaker section and labor community are suffering more, they don’t have a home for shelter, some are stuck in other states and cities, for all those the condition Is even more painful. Some people are stuck alone far from family members, some elderly people are living alone, and people suffering from chronic diseases are also in a critical situation. Overall people are stressing too much due to the whole pandemic thing. And the major concern is what if you turn out to be a positive COVID 19 patient, the fear of dying, the fear from society when they make a distance from you and judge you just because you got infected!

There are many cases where medical staff is being poorly treated because people are afraid that they might infect them as they spend their time treating COVID 19 Patient all the time. The reasons are many, and it is affecting a wide section of society. People are getting more depressed these days, stressing over their situation and the whole pandemic thing is making them anxious. And when this stress is out of control it leads to anxiety disorders. People are becoming more infuriated and impatient and as a result they get irritated easily, their body reacts negatively to anxiety, they are becoming more vulnerable and emotionally weak. It is all because the pandemic has made it difficult for individuals to handle stress. The last stage of stress is causing a compete for mental breakdown causing ill health effects.

If you are someone who has had Covid-19, you may have recovered from the illness, but you might now have some lingering side effects. These can affect you physically or mentally, or both.

Possible Mental Health Symptoms Related to Having Covid-19 can include:

Brain Fog
Short Term Memory Loss
Confusion
Not Feeling “like MySelf”
Problems Concentrating

There are a few practices that an individual with Anxiety Disorders can practice feeling a little relief:

Mediation

Mediation has proven as the best cure to revive yourself from all the anxious thoughts. It calms your brain and lets you breathe freely. But you need to adopt it as a regular practice.

Reading

Books are always your best friends. Reading can become one of the best escapes from the real world. It lets you dwell in the world of your own where you can rejuvenate yourself.

Cooking

Even if you are not a good cook, you can try your hands at cooking or baking. In the time of COVID 19 pandemic, everybody has become an INTERNET CHEF. But don’t worry, you need not get into any competition, but you just need to keep yourself busy in something productive that gives you happiness.

Exercising

There are various videos available online on how you can start exercising at home with or without any workout equipment. You can take motivation from any of the videos and start exercising. This also assures your healthy well-being.

The reality of life isn’t very good right now and we all cannot help this situation. All we can do is let some positivity and hope surface all the trauma of chaos.

What Are the Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Mental Health?

Prior to Covid-19’s appearance, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that about one in four people, worldwide, would suffer from mental health concerns at some point in their lives

Now that we’ve all been so touched by the pandemic, the CDC estimates that around forty percent of us are struggling with mental health, suicide ideation or substance abuse concerns.In reality, these numbers are probably low, as the instances of anxiety, depression, trauma and stress-related disorders have been steadily rising as the pandemic drags on. Clearly, we will continue to see the mental health repercussions of this worldwide health crisis, even long after the world returns to normal

What Are the Possible Mental Symptoms After Recovering from Covid-19?

When people experience trauma, it usually shakes them to their core, especially if they felt they had little to no control over the event. They feel helpless, they may experience flashbacks, or they may experience a persistent fear that something bad will happen to them again

Best Anxiety Disorder Therapy in Nallagandla, Hyderabad

If you are experiencing emotional and mental health challenges during the pandemic or afterwards, Our professional therapists are available to help – in person, online or through a video session. Our virtual platforms are highly secure, allowing us to maintain absolute confidentiality with strict non disclosure policies.

We offer time-effective therapy and provide you with the skills and knowledge to achieve the most advanced level of functioning in your daily life. In a supportive environment with trust we will work as a team to develop a shared understanding of your difficulties and identify how these difficulties affect your thoughts, beliefs, behaviours, feelings and daily functioning.

At the Neya Psychiatric Clinic in Hyderabad, we know that state-of-the-art, evidence-based therapy and innovative psychiatry is paramount to your success. That’s why we prioritize exceptional personal service along with outstanding clinical treatment and medication management.

Dr Priya R Nair
Consultant Psychiatrist

Neya Psychiatric Clinic
Hyderabad