Will the epidemic affect human psychology for 20 years? Experts say so...

Working from home, online teaching, and staying at home... At present, under the normal epidemic prevention and control, people in isolation and lockdown are inevitably prone to negative emotions and even psychological problems.

According to the World Health Organization, in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of anxiety and depression worldwide increased by more than 25%. "Psychological epidemic prevention" has become another "battlefield" in the fight against the epidemic.

Depression, insomnia, irritability

Am I sick at home?

The weather has become warmer in May. Miaomiao, who lives with a friend in Yangpu District, Shanghai, was finally able to go downstairs for a walk this week. She originally came to Shanghai to visit relatives and has been here for two months.

"I felt suffocated every day and often lost my temper for no reason." Miaomiao has been troubled by irritability for a long time. "I really want to see flowers, ride a car, and go out."

Many people who are quarantined at home have similar thoughts to Miaomiao. Tian Hui, who returned to Chaoyang, Beijing from other places, has been working from home for a month. "At the beginning, my schedule was very chaotic. I couldn't sleep every day and felt bored doing everything." During the first days of quarantine, the only thing Tian Hui wanted to do every day was to call friends and family. "We talked about everything. I just wanted to talk."

Yang Yanjie, director of the Psychology and Behavior Research Center of Harbin Medical University, said that this is a "stress response" that people experience during public emergencies, which includes emotional stress responses caused by the epidemic itself, such as depression, anxiety, and fear. "Due to the need for epidemic prevention and control, when people are required to be quarantined in centralized areas or at home, their activity space is fixed, their movements are restricted, their social interactions are affected, and they are also prone to anxiety, depression, and other emotions."

On March 2, the World Health Organization released a report stating that in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by more than 25%.

As the epidemic situation changes and people are isolated at home for a long time, their lifestyles have changed dramatically while they are worried about being infected. As a result, many people have developed negative emotions such as anxiety, impatience, panic, etc. to varying degrees.

Will the epidemic affect human mental health for 20 years?

Yang Yanjie said that under stressful situations, most people will have short-term emotional reactions, such as mild anxiety, fear or depression.

The main manifestations of anxiety include restlessness, tension, excessive worry, and in severe cases, symptoms such as bloating, stomach pain, diarrhea, tachycardia, chest tightness and shortness of breath. Depression is often manifested as low mood, decreased interest, loss of purpose, and even loss and despair; while fear mainly includes excessive vigilance, fear, irrational behavior, etc.

It is worth noting that depression or anxiety does not mean you have a mental illness. The depression, anxiety, fear and other emotions that most people in home isolation experience are just a symptom and a normal stress response.

Some people say that "the impact of the epidemic on people's mental health will last for 20 years." In response to this statement, Yang Yanjie said that generally speaking, most people's stress reactions are mild and short-term. As the situation of the public emergency improves or ends, these symptoms will also be alleviated or disappear. Most people can slowly recover through self-adjustment.

Professional reminder: of course, a few people experience severe stress reactions. If they experience low mood, decreased interest, palpitations, irritability, insomnia, or recurring suicidal thoughts, and these symptoms last for up to two weeks and cannot be relieved through self-exercise, relaxation, etc., they may have depression or anxiety disorders and need to go to a professional institution for diagnosis and treatment in a timely manner, and receive psychotherapy or drug treatment.

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How to regulate yourself while staying at home?

Yang Yanjie said that in order to avoid anxiety, depression and other emotions caused by stress reactions, one must adjust one's cognition, maintain proper exercise, maintain a regular schedule, and more importantly, have firm confidence.

We need to identify automatic thinking and carefully attribute things. Reading a lot of negative reports with overly pessimistic emotions can easily lead to irrational cognition and panic. We need to see the serious side of the epidemic, but we also need to rationally obtain official information released by the government, not believe in rumors, not spread them, and strengthen our confidence.

When you feel overly anxious, irritable, and have difficulty falling asleep, you can practice the "448 breathing method" (inhale for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 4 seconds, and finally exhale for 8 seconds), "mindfulness meditation" relaxation training and other body and mind adjustment methods to divert your attention, focus on the present, and regulate anxiety, tension, and panic.

In addition, experts remind people to strengthen connections through phone calls, diary writing, online social media, etc., to get support from family and friends, and to adjust through professional psychological counseling when necessary.

If conditions permit, you can go out for a walk and breathe fresh air. Make sure you get enough sleep every day. If you don't go out, you can also do yoga, strength training and other exercises at home to improve your mood and enhance your immunity.

"Exercise really makes people relax," Miao Miao also said, "I've been doing aerobics with Liu Genghong recently, and I don't feel so upset when I move."

Source: China News Network

Editor: Gao Meng

Editor: Zhang Xi