COVID-19 Depression and Anxiety: Mental Health Care Methods

It’s an understatement to say that we did a lot about our collective mental health last year.The· Coronavirus pandemic, High rate unemployment, Racial inequality And split, sometimes hostile, Political situation Have got Driving stress method Among Americans.is more than 40% reported There are symptoms of depression and anxiety in January 2021, compared to just 11% from January to June 2019.

It will take months, and in some cases years, to completely heal from the 2020 trauma, but in the meantime, there is something we all can do to deal with it.

To help you overcome these challenges, we have put together our best mental health advice-burnout, anxiety, and sleepIn addition to that, there are benefits of meditation, physical activity, and going in and out of the outdoors. We hope this will help you overcome the mental health problems and mental distress that you may be dealing with at this time.

How to deal with burnout

2019, World Health Organization Declaration of burnout as an official medical diagnosisProve that burnout is really a problem that plagues modern workers. Most people live in a stormy sea of ​​endless to-do lists, including work responsibilities, childcare, social life, romantic relationships, and household chores.

So where is the time to take care of yourself? When everything else can be easily and easily prioritized, you must make time to pay attention to your own needs. It’s easy to say, but I know.

The first step is Recognize signs of burnout Then determine if you have it or if it’s on the verge of burning out.One of the best and most effective burnout prevention tactics you can adopt Set work boundaries, May be required Take a day of mental health Sometimes.You also need to start practicing Say “no” to things that don’t help you..

Don’t forget the stress that seemingly healthy habits can put on you: if you’re doing hard workouts that always make you feel tired and frustrated, you can downgrade your workouts , You may just want to take some time away from the gym. Overtraining syndrome You are in a state where you can reach other aspects of your life.

Similarly, your diet may have an impact. Eating a diet high in processed foods Causes poor mood and low productivityA healthy diet can support good mood, concentration, and better productivity.Make sure you are getting Enough calories But: It’s a surefire way to get sick physically and mentally if you eat too little while trying to do everything.

There’s a sleep section later in this article, but it’s a good idea not to point out the link between sleep deprivation and burnout. 2012 survey (PDF) The Journal of Occupational Health Psychology found that lack of sleep was a major risk factor for developing burnout. 2018 study Insomnia is “significantly associated with burnout in the white-collar worker population,” he said.

COVID-19 How to deal with anxiety

Anxiety is like modern cognitive plague. Ask someone who has experienced anxiety and knows if the answer is likely to be “yes”. Anxiety disorder is the most common mental disorder in the United States 40 million adults.. And it does not include all people who deal with mild anxiety and have not been diagnosed with anxiety disorders.

Even without the truth Anxiety attackThis kind of noisy anxiety can adversely affect your health, mood, sleep, productivity and relationships.

Dealing with anxiety can sometimes feel futile, but it is definitely possible with the help of qualified professionals under your belt with the right skills and if you need it.Start with these 5 life hacks to relieve anxietyNext, let’s take a look at the following anxiety-related content.

How to meditate and why it works

meditation It’s a very effective way to deal with stress, depression and anxiety.But instead of using it to stop anxiety attacks that have already begun, meditation Daily preventive tactics..

Researchers believe that meditation can improve emotional health. Affects the amygdala, This is the main emotional processing center in your brain.Studies show that regular meditation Increase the process called gyrification, This is believed to bring more outer folds of your brain and help information processing.Some studies also include meditation Delays or stalls age-related changes In the brain.

Besides the brain, there is also meditation Turned out to improve Heart rate variability, A marker that shows how well you handle stress.

Are you convinced that you need to add meditation to your mental health tool weapons?Try one of these Great meditation app To get started.As you go deeper into practice, you may want to find out Wellness or meditation retreat In the same way.

Go outdoors to relieve stress

You probably have heard of it Vitamin D Well, it’s essential for many things. You may have heard of Vitamin D, which is called “Sunshine Vitamin”. If you combine the two and the two, you can guess that it is better to go out.

Spending time in the wonderful outdoors and connecting with nature Known to improve mood And Lower cortisol levels (The main stress hormones in your body).But Put plants in your office or home You can improve your productivity and take a daily walk in nature Restore concentration (Goodbye, sluggish after lunch!).

actually, Forest bathing Or shinrin-yoku, The practice of natural remedies in Japan Reduces stress and anxiety the same as Fatigue and confusion..There is also a forest bath Reduce feelings of anger and depression.. These benefits may be partly due to the positive effects of forest bathing on stress-related physiological markers such as: blood pressure And Heart rate..

When working indoors, it can be difficult to get enough sunlight and fresh air. Please bring in activities that you usually do inside and outside.

Example:

Mental health benefits of exercise

The obvious benefits of exercise appear on the outside: you may lose weight, tone, build muscle, and even get better skin. But what’s happening in your body is definitely more important.

You can actually exercise Make you happy Through several mechanisms, but endorphins or pleasing chemical boosts are the most immediate and probably most noticeable for most people ( Runner’s High is real!! ). The waves of well-being and energy that you feel right after training don’t last all day, but scientists have come to some pretty interesting conclusions about how exercise affects your brain over time.

For example 2014 study To Physiology frontier We have found that regular exercise can help people become more resilient to stress-generally speaking, it allows you to recover more easily from stress and emotional situations. It means you can.

It is also well established that physical activity can play a major role in alleviating the symptoms of depression. In fact, 2018 review To Psychology Frontier “If properly prescribed and provided, exercise is as effective as other first-line treatments, but with few harmful side effects,” he concluded.

This section of this article is far from a comprehensive guide to the benefits of exercise mental health, but it does help show that science is compelling.

If you are suffering from mild depression, anxiety, or simply mood swings, it may be worthwhile to develop exercise habits if you haven’t exercised yet. If you have been diagnosed with or suspect you have a mental illness, discuss the potential of your exercise program with a mental health professional.

Sleep and mental health

In CNET we tend to harp sleep Many things, because we know exactly how important it is to both physical and mental overall health. Sleep is at the root of everything you do. If you don’t get enough sleep, you can’t be productive at work or school. You can’t exercise that hard (and your muscles and joints don’t recover that fast); you may experience mood swings and depression.

actually, 2018 editorial In pharmacies and therapies, called “the extraordinary importance of sleep,” scientists say “sleep disorders, work schedules, and poor sleep due to chaotic lifestyles continue to threaten both health and safety.” Results that have been discussed and specifically concluded that inadequate sleep is essentially harmful to all health.

“It is clear that sleep loss has a significant impact on human health and well-being,” he concludes. Manual for sleep deprivation, This includes a decline in overall quality of life.

Short-term consequences of inadequate sleep include increased stress response, headache, decreased concentration and productivity, depressive symptoms, increased risky behavior, and increased emotional response (eg, with slight discomfort). It disappears), attention is reduced, and information processing is delayed. And increased anxiety, Extensive Review of Sleep Studies..

Again, this is not intended to be a comprehensive study of all the ways sleep supports mental health, but some of these selected studies have shown that sleep is anxious and depressed. A function that emphasizes some of the most important mechanisms that can improve decision-making, and cognition.

If you’re having a hard time resting, consider talking to your doctor about what you’re experiencing before turning to. Over-the-counter sleep aids..Also look at you Caffeine consumption habits, your Evening routine, diet And Exercise habits See if there are opportunities for improvement.

The information contained in this article is for educational and informative purposes only and is not intended to provide health or medical advice. Always consult your doctor or other qualified healthcare provider if you have any questions about your medical condition or health goals.