Meditation and relaxation will keep anxiety at bay amid the COVID-19 pandemic

In 1918, the Spanish flu resulted in the death of 50 million people because of the lack of sanitary protocols and the inexistence of antibiotics to treat pneumonia fueled the most devastating pandemic in history. However, in the cities where social and physical distancing measures were implemented, contagion and mortality rates decreased.

One century later, the same measure was used to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic : isolation . However, staying home also includes several challenges, such as taking care of your mental health during the quarantine .

After the Mexican government asked people to stay home, health experts issued a series of recommendations to look after your mental health while you isolate.

Dr. José Luis Díaz Meza, an academic from the UNAM’s Psychology Faculty, explained that anxiety is defined as apprehensive anticipation in regards to an event or situation. This feeling is accompanied by alterations or physiological expressions known as tension or stress : “Anxiety is a catastrophic thought about immediate or future events. On the other hand, being afraid is having fear of specific situations that can turn into extreme fears , so-called phobias , that can paralyze and change our everyday life.”

According to the expert, anxiety can last for some time and can turn into an anxiety disorder , which requires urgent medical attention.

Although it is normal to feel anxious during the pandemic , you can fight anxiety before it turns into an illness by creating a new routine that complies with isolation measures.

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Meditation helps to fight anxiety

For Dr. Martín Felipe Vázquez, a psychiatry expert, his recommendation is to read information from official sources and to measure the amount of daily news in order to protect the mental health of adults and children.

The psychiatrist also recommended old breathing techniques that can help lower stress levels , such as diaphragmatic breathing .

However, there are many more relaxation techniques . For the expert, learning to meditate is a very important ability to handle stress and should also be practiced by children. Besides meditation , he also recommended mindfulness , a meditation technique that focuses on the present moment.

According to scientific evidence, meditation is useful in the treatment of anxiety and depression , however, it requires some practice.

On the other hand, physical activity is also important amid isolation. In order to stay healthy, you can practice yoga or workout while at home.

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Family time

For Martín Felipe Vázquez, spending all day with your partner, children, or family members can be a huge challenge and he recommends creating a routine to complete housework , recreational activities , homework , and allow every family member to have time for themselves.

For Dr. Díaz Meza, families must negotiate so that cohabitating is easier for everyone and openly discuss issues as isolation can increase family problems, including domestic violence .

Moreover, it is essential to avoid abusing alcohol and tobacco , as well as following a healthy diet and sleeping 8 hours, which will benefit the immune system .

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“Physical distancing will buy us time. The experiences of China, Italy, and other countries are part of statistic models and clinical trials , therefore, the extra weeks in isolation will help us to prepare a strategy for the incoming days.”The psychiatrist explains that the quarantine is phenomenon does not necessarily last 40 days, as in the case of other countries and added that this is the perfect time to get close to people, listen to people’s stories, and virtually visit museums, “we have to use technology in our favor and caution but social contact must be maintained.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic , one of the issues “is that life as we knew it does no longer exist,” as novelist Paul Auster once wrote. Amid a pandemic, it is important to stay calm, meditate, and plan a routine so that anxiety does not become overwhelming.

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