By: Melissa Molina

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic might be upsetting and stressful for individuals. Anxiety and fear about the virus and what could happen can be overpowering and cause forceful feelings in adults and children. General well-being activities, for example, social distancing or wearing masks, can cause individuals to feel detached and forlorn and can result in anxiety. Nonetheless, these activities are important to decrease the spread of COVID-19.

Being able to cope with anxiety due to COVID-19 is important and here are some tips on how to do just that:

1. Educate yourself and your loved ones on what to do if one is sick. Contact a healthcare provider before starting any self treatment for the coronavirus.
2. Take breaks and do not over-stress yourself with reading fake news, social media and/or conspiracies.
3. Isolate and protect yourself but stay connected with friends and loved ones.
4. Find a new hobby, something to keep you busy and something you can control.
5. Focus on positives: cooking, reading a new book or tv shows.
6. Practice self care: try to eat well balanced meals, get plenty of sleep and unwind by taking deep breaths.

It is completely ordinary and justifiable to feel anxiety in the time of COVID-19. Indeed, uneasiness is a solid response to new, perhaps difficult conditions. It can provoke us to focus, prepare, and guard ourselves. However, your anxiety, when coped with, can in turn transform from something that controls you to something that can help you.

If you or someone you know needs support with anxiety, please contact our psychotherapy offices in New York or New Jersey to talk to one of our licensed professional psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, or psychotherapists at Arista Counseling & Psychotherapy. Contact our Paramus, NJ or Manhattan, NY offices respectively, at (201) 368-3700 or (212) 722-1920 to set up an appointment. For more information, please visit http://www.counselingpsychotherapynjny.com/ .

Sources: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hope-resilience/202003/coping-anxiety-in-the-age-covid-19 https://www.helpguide.org/articles/anxiety/coronavirus-anxiety.htm

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