Worrying about your health and well-being, and that of your loved ones, doesnt have to reach peak panic mode for you to start using anxiety-management and resilience-building skills. Heres where to start.
1. Stop scrolling
If you notice anxious thoughts spike following a Twitter or Instagram sesh, or after watching the news, its time to tune out. Even pre-pandemic research published in 2010 in Current Psychiatry Reports showed that health anxiety can be high following exposure to disease-related media and there is no shortage of virus-dominated stories at the moment. Many psychologists, myself included, are recommending that clients limit media exposure as one way to help manage excessive anxiety, says Dr. Melanie Badali, a psychologist and board director of Anxiety Canada. Cut back to checking your social channels just once a day, or every few days, to give yourself a break from the pandemic news cycle.(Related: How to Know If Your Level of Health Anxiety Is “Normal”)
2. Balance the probabilities
If youre following the governments health advice, taking reasonable precautions and otherwise in good health, its important to factor all that in before you freak out on your way into the grocery store. I always tell my clients to think about the probabilities, says Dr. Kristen Kaploun, a clinical psychologist in Burlington, Ont.
3. Call out your anxious thoughts
If youve balanced the probabilities (whether its the danger of shopping in-store, your child going to school or attending a distanced birthday party, for example) and you know the likely outcome is probably fine, but youre still starting to panic, its time to call a duck a duck, as Kaploun puts it. In other words, concede that its your anxiety talking. If were able to acknowledge that anxious thought, its much easier to dismiss it, she says.Next: The Impact of Social Distancing on Seniors Living at Home
The post 3 Tips to Help You Cope With Covid-19 Anxiety appeared first on Best Health Magazine Canada.
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