Before you even start this article, do me a favor and take a really deep breath.
When we’re living in an anxiety-provoking environment, our bodies feel it, even if we’re not fully aware. You might find that your shoulders are hunched over, or that you were unintentionally holding tension in your face or core, or that your breathing is quick and shallow. That’s totally normal!
Take a big breath in, roll back your shoulders, smooth out your forehead, and let’s have a low-stress chat about COVID-19 anxiety.
It’s been a strange few weeks. If you’re like me or the vast majority of the clients I see, you’re feeling anxious and overwhelmed with all of the news, extra protective measures to keep yourselves and others healthy, and general lack of a clear idea of what’s been going on. I hear you, friend. Me too.
I’m going to give you 10 practical steps for how to manage your anxiety as we navigate this new space together.
#1: Don’t try to make your anxiety “go away.”
When we find ourselves feeling anxious, often our first response is to try to minimize it or shut it down. The thing is, that’s legitimately not possible. Trying to make it go away is like trying to make the sky lime green. You could try, but it’s probably not going to be too successful.
#2: Thank your anxiety for showing up and reminding you there is something important to pay attention to.
Hear me friends, the fact that you’re anxious right now means that your body is responding appropriately to the situation. Like a warning light on your car’s dashboard, anxiety “turns on” when it needs to convey something important. COVID-19 is scary, and especially for those with chronic illness. We don’t need to panic, but heightened concern is warranted. Thank anxiety for doing its job and trying to protect you.
#3: Gently tell your anxiety that you’re already aware of COVID-19, and therefore it doesn’t need to be so loud.
Once you’ve thanked anxiety, tell it that you’re well aware of the situation at hand, so the volume (meaning the intensity of your anxiety) at which anxiety is attempting to warn you is a bit too high. Our anxiety can calm to a whisper when it recognizes that we are cognizant of the threat.
#4: Accept that anxiety might be hanging out with you a bit more often over the next few weeks for totally understandable reasons.
We can’t have the expectation that our body and emotions would somehow be completely indifferent to what’s going on around us. That’s like being upset with a baby who can’t fall asleep in the middle of a rock concert. Your anxiety is going to be with you, and that is normal, healthy, and appropriate given the situation.
#5: Stay connected!
Goodness is this important. Please be even more intentional with staying connected with your people. Use FaceTime, Skype, phone calls—heck, write letters! If you have a mental health therapist, stay connected with them too! Like the vast majority of my colleagues, I’m offering telehealth (online) counseling for my clients who can’t make it in to my office for any reason. This is not the time to “skip” on accessing these services.
#6: Move your body.
Anxiety is a very physical experience, and for that reason it can be really helpful to “work” it out of your system by providing your body with some movement. This can be adapted to whatever level of physicality your body allows. YouTube yoga, get up once an hour and move, take walks outside if you’re able in your part of the world, etc. Give that extra energy in your system some place to go.
#7: Be gentle with your capacity.
You are probably not going to get as much done as you normally do, and that is 150% okay. Your body and brain are very busy responding to so many more stressors, so your productivity with “normal” life activities is probably going to drop. Again, this makes sense, and is definitely not something we should be judging or shaming ourselves about.
#8: Get grounded.
Make a list of all of the things in your life that haven’t changed. It’s probably more than you realize! We can provide our bodies and brains with some amount of normalcy by being mindful of the familiar.
#9: Distraction.
Give yourself permission to get lost for a bit in a good movie, book, or project at home. We don’t want to “numb out” but it is really healthy for your brain to be absorbed in something other than COVID-19 for parts of your day. The news is on a 24/7 cycle. It’ll be there when you get back from your hour break. Give your brain and body rest.
#10: Kindness, kindness, kindness to yourself and others.
Again, these are strange times! We’re all not going to be our normal selves, and it would do us well to practice extending grace and kindness to ourselves and others knowing we’re all trying our best. Check in on your friends and talk to other people about how you’re doing (don’t wait for someone to ask!).
Friends, this is a hard situation, but I have so much confidence in our ability to navigate through it with strength and resilience. Be patient with yourself and remember you have survived every one of your worst days so far. This too will pass. We’ve got this.
Wish you could hear more from Katie?
You can! We hosted a Q&A livestream where Katie answered your most-asked questions about anxiety, fear, overwhelm, and faith through these uncertain times, and she served up some very practical techniques we can be using to navigate it all! By popular demand, that conversation is now available for you to stream and replay anytime!
Looking for the full-length conversation with *all* of your questions? Perfect. Stream the full 45 min chat with Katie on our Facebook page!
Maybe you're just looking for the highlights! Look no further! We've edited down a 15 min version with just a few of your questions and most-impactful moments for you to stream on our IGTV!
Written by: Katie Marsh, MA, LPCC
In case you didn’t catch all the extra letters at the end of her name, not only is Katie a Minneapolis/St. Paul member of our Fam, she’s also a phenomenal Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor. She’s the real deal. She personally “gets it,” as she battles Chronic Migraine, and it’s literally her job to help empower others with hope and lasting life-change. In her free time you're most likely to find her baking, wandering museums with her husband, running, or sorting through a stack of books that she admittedly keeps telling herself she’ll read.
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