The coronavirus pandemic continues to impact millions of people as it spreads over the globe like wildfire; but while the focus is on this more obvious killer, other symptoms are being ignored. Being forced to stay indoors and social distance has separated people from their communities. These communities helped shape their identities and daily lives just months ago, and kept them happy and stable. Throughout the world, mental health concerns are on the rise during this pandemic. Although our current situation may make life seem more hopeless than before, there are still ways to stay happy and healthy.
One major effect of the coronavirus is cutting people off from their immediate communities that they interacted with on a daily basis. Personally, my volleyball community was a large part of my life but as soon as the pandemic hit, I was completely cut off from playing with others. I’m still able to interact with the volleyball world community through the Internet or talk to my volleyball friends, but I’m not able to connect with them in the same way I used to. This experience is shared by people around the world, who have been cut off in meaningful ways from the communities that were central to our lives.
In addition to the impact on daily routines, quarantine has had a significant effect on mental health. Many people are experiencing a profound loneliness that they have not felt before. Jill Lepore, a historian who spoke for UCSB’s Arts and Lectures Winter quarter, recently published an article titled "The History of Loneliness". She explores how the concept of loneliness has changed over time, and specifically how popular living alone has become in the last half-century, contributing to a “loneliness epidemic”. In the current pandemic, this loneliness epidemic has been even more heightened. Because of the shelter-in-place people who live alone now have little escape from the loneliness they feel. Even people who live with others, like me, are feeling lonely because of the lack of diverse interactions. When the pandemic started I came home from school to live with my mom, her fiancé, my dog, and my cat. Hours of sitting on my computer, interacting with people over Zoom, email, and texts, with no ability to do activities with people outside my household has been very lonely. According to Lepore, loneliness is “grief, distended. People are primates, and even more sociable than chimpanzees. We hunger for intimacy. We wither without it.”
With this growing loneliness at the heart of it, mental health problems are rapidly increasing. With the combination of social isolation, lack of physical activity, possible job loss or decreased income, fear of family and friends getting sick and dying, moving to online classes, and the stressful political climate, it’s no wonder why many people are having strong reactions to this stress, often resulting in anxiety and depression. People without a history of these symptoms are starting to experience them, and people who have preexisting mental health issues are at a greater risk.
Unfortunately, treatments for mental illnesses in the pandemic is not a primary concern. Because of social distancing orders, many mental health treatments, like one-on-one therapy, therapy groups, and outpatient programs, are not available. Thankfully, some of these can be held on the phone or over Zoom, but in-person treatments are ideal. Many people are relying on individual coping mechanisms, but with the shelter-in-place orders, many well-known treatment options are less of an option.
Personally, I have struggled with depression for years. It comes and goes depending on the stressors in my life and my ability to cope with them. Right now I feel isolated from the outside world. I haven’t seen my boyfriend in over two months, I’m not able to go explore and have adventures as much as I normally would, my trail runs are being derailed with the lack of parking access at parks, my online classes are stressful, and one of my biggest coping mechanisms, playing volleyball, is completely gone. Because my mom, her fiancé, and I have stable incomes right now, I don’t have the financial stressors that millions of others do. Also, thankfully, I’ve been on a stable medication regime for years that takes the edge off of my depression.
In this ever-changing pandemic, it’s important to find ways to be adaptive and cope. It’s also necessary to be more vocal about these issues, so people who are feeling these symptoms for the first time know how to help themselves. Physical activity has always been a main coping mechanism for mental health symptoms, and I can absolutely attest to how helpful it is. Although there is a shelter-in-place order, you can still go for a walk or a jog around your neighborhood. You can exercise inside the house or on a porch or deck if you want to. For more intense exercise, jump rope for a few minutes or do some jumping jacks, even hula-hooping can be a fun exercise. You can follow a Youtube video for a cardio HIIT workout, an ab exercise, or maybe a Zumba class! For more low-key exercise, follow a yoga Youtube video, or do some stretching. Meditation videos and breathing exercises can be very calming as well.
Art can be an extremely helpful tool for taking care of your mental health. If you have art supplies around the house, paint what you see out your window, draw your cat, follow a Bob Ross tutorial video, color in a printed coloring sheet. You could also be inspired by some fun makeup videos, cut up old shirts and get artsy with making masks, learn how to knit, bake something new (I highly suggest making some granola), do some Sudoku puzzles, or just research something you’ve always been interested in. I also recommend writing in a journal about how you’re feeling at that moment, just to get it out. Listen to some music!
If you feel trapped in your house, you can safely go for a walk if you just grab a mask or something to tie around your face. Getting some sun and fresh air can be very helpful. Just sitting in the sunshine for a few minutes can make you feel very rejuvenated. If you’re feeling lonely, find ways to communicate with others. Call a friend or family member, text, Facetime, talk to a significant other, call a therapist if you have one, or have a conversation with your cat. There are always hotlines to call if you want to talk to someone about mental health problems, and you don’t have to be considering suicide to call them. These hotlines are open to everyone (look at the bottom of this article for a list you can call or text). Although the world is changing, there are always ways to stay happy and mentally healthy, no matter what type of symptoms or strength of symptoms you are feeling. You just have to use the resources that are available to you to cope and know when to reach out to others.
Mental Health Hotlines:
NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 Monday-Friday from 10 am-6 pm EST
National Institute of Mental Health at 866-615-6464 Monday-Friday 8:30am-5pm EST
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255
Contact Mental Health America Hotline by texting MHA to 741741
Contact the Crisis Text Line by texting CONNECT to 741741
If you or someone you care about is having thoughts of suicide, always call 911