How to Combat Coronavirus Anxiety and Do Your Work
How to Combat Coronavirus Anxiety and Do Your Work
How to Combat Coronavirus Anxiety and Do Your Work
By Leah Campbell
March 27, 2020
Summary
Your mind is probably running a million miles a minute, your Google search history and your social media feeds are all coronavirus all the time, and-frankly-you may feel like work is the last thing you care about.
"This is a time when work can be a positive distraction," says Laura Rhodes-Levin, LMFT, who founded The Missing Peace Center for Anxiety and is a co-chair for the Integrative & Behavioral Health special interest group for the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.
So how do you keep mentally "Showing up" to work?
Those moments of sunshine and fresh air can help you to reset and refocus so
that you can return refreshed and able to work.
"Exercise helps reduce sadness, improves thinking, and induces calm." So if you can, take a walk, go for a jog, take your dog out-anything to get your body moving and your mind working again.
Meira Ellias, a psychotherapist and owner of DC Therapeutic Services, says, "People thrive on schedule and routine. Get up at the same time you usually do for work and do your normal morning routine." If it doesn't make sense to continue with the exact same routine, tweak it to create a new version that works for your current situation.
For the record, she says that doesn't have to mean putting on your regular work attire if you're working from home-it's okay to enjoy your comfort wear for now.
To improve your ability to focus, especially if you're now working from home, she says, "Try to have a designated place to do work, instead of doing it from your couch in front of the TV.".
"Try to align your work responsibilities with when you can focus most. For example, times when you naturally have more energy or when the people you live with tend to be quieter."
Mental health hotlines can help to connect you to the resources you need to get and stay well in this time of high stress and anxiety.
Reference
Campbell, L. (2020, March 27). How to Combat Coronavirus Anxiety When You Still Have to Do Your Job. Retrieved April 12, 2020, from https://www.themuse.com/advice/combat-coronavirus-anxiety-stress-still-do-your-job