Hello everyone! Welcome back to another presentation on IN THE WHITE. Today, I will be discussing some of the psychological impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and how we can deal with it.
To start things off, I must say that the Coronavirus Pandemic is not anything new to us given that we have been up against it for more than a year now.
As of 10th August 2021, there has been 204,641,443 Coronavirus cases recorded globally alongside 183,727,933 recoveries and 4,324,427 deaths. I know the numbers are scary right? But that is how things stand at the moment.
At this point in time I feel it necessary to mention that within a year we have managed to get a vaccines such as Pfizer- BioNTeh, Modena, Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen available. Regardless of the fact there are different types of vaccines administered worldwide, there is no doubt that each of them have one factor in common and that is to provide immunity to every human being keeping in mind of the variety of strengths and weaknesses each one possess.
Moving on to the central theme of today’s topic, saying that the global Pandemic has one way or the other affected us all would be an understatement, as we are now all are aware that not even a newborn is risk free from the virus and the mental health impacts it brings to adults, children, the elderly and the society as a whole.
There are numerous factors causing stress which is why people are behaving in a certain way these days.
The number one reason I would attribute the tensions to be the longer period of lockdowns or the constant lifting and imposing of COVID-19 measures can be tiring and frustrating at times.
Unemployment or working on reduced hours and pay can easily add to the rising tension of food security and survival despite the number of people a family might have, having sufficient food supply for everyone is always a challenge, especially when there is only one breadwinner in the family of many.
Tensed home environment and other social instability factors like robberies and domestic violence are some issues we can be faced with and must be handled carefully and with great understanding so the socio-economic effect can be overcome.
Talking about vulnerable groups who must be really cared for are our children. I do understand it may be difficult at times to control them, particularly from outdoor activities but it is important that they also follow the protocols in place such as mask wearing, to ensure that they do not contract and transmit the virus onto others.
There is no two ways about the point that children’s education has greatly been affected by the Pandemic, especially for small island developing states like Fiji, who has been battling the second wave of the disease for nearly four months now, with schools still closed and students encouraged to do online learning via worksheets provided by the Education Ministry along with the opportunity to learn from the Bula Kids television series which was launched in May this year, in partnership with UNICEF.
This shapes nicely to the next part of the write-up which tries explaining what we can do in such circumstances.
How to deal with Mental Health Issues
Given the fact that we often associate mental health with depression and emotions, it is important to stay in contact with friends and families, as this a time where we need each other the most.
I know it is easier said than done but communication at this point in time could not have been much simpler and easier with the use of mobile phones and technological features such audio and video calls. Arguably, video calling may not reduce physical presence of a person but it certainly provides a form of relief whereby you could actually see the person you are chatting with.
Doing regular exercises and eating healthy food can keep one’s body and mind active at all times. This can keep a person happy and stress free.
Listening to music is another way to divert your mind from stress and change the way a person thinks and acts.
Last but not the least, doing something you are good at can make one feel better and who knows you could possibly earn a few dollars which could provide some form of finical support one needs for survival this stage of the Pandemic. Click here for more tips on mental health.
With that being said, this short piece of writing comes to an end. Hope you enjoyed reading it and was helpful and informative.
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