Fear is the biggest problem with the Covid19 pandemic, especially with the media and social media stirring the pot. This is my 4th pandemic, I grew up during SARS, Swine Flu and Bird Flu, I remember how it felt to wonder if at any point, I was going to just get this disease and die. Wash your hands, wear masks, avoid people. My mother used to put tea tree oil in our masks which ultimately made a foul smelling mask.. even worse.. I do not recommend it. But I do recommend following all government guidelines on how to handle the pandemic, they are collaborating with experience and seasoned professionals to give us the best result, even if it doesn’t feel like it. Listen to your doctors and nurses, wash your hands, become a hermit.
Control
We as humans, love to control stuff, it is in our biology. We need to control the outcomes of things so for this, we actually need to practice what Olaf teaches in Frozen 2 (which I am sure many parents have watched many many times over)
Things we cannot control:
The actions and attitude of others
Predicting what will happen
The amount of stocks in supermarkets
How long this will last
How the disease spread
How the disease originated and how high the death toll is in each country
How the government is handling the situation
The selfishness of others
Creating a cure
Things we can control
Your positive attitude
How much news and social media content you consume to encourage fear
How you spending your time
Finding fun thing to do
Making the best of a bad situation
Kindness and grace in the face of adversity
Following the government guidelines
Staying calm and keeping on top of your mental health
Helping those in need
We cannot control what we cannot control, no matter how much we wish we could. We can only control ourselves and our actions. I want you to keep that in mind as the media tries to bombard you with fear based content, this pandemic is a massive payday for the media, you don’t have to subscribe. Get information directly, from the government and the WHO and control what you can control and most importantly, a if I haven’t said this enough. Keep on top of your mental health. Make a routine and stick to it, whatever it is. If you don’t have one, write one and see what works, I have an entire massive post dedicated to this whole topic: https://jadenyxlifecoach.com/jades-blog/creating-an-anxiety-battle-plan. Whatever works for you. We can get through this together, Cool, Calm, Collected and Kindly.
Fear
Now let’s get on to the practical side of dealing with your fear, I have adapted the emotional clearing article to specifically target the fears around this pandemic.
This pandemic has made us fear for our very survival, this isn’t like a tiger or a scary phone call, this is a disease. An unstoppable disease that spreads by doing what most humans love most, socialising.
We keep these fears in our head and they are biological justified but our minds are blowing them out of proportion because it is being antagonised.
Firstly: As long as you do as the government requests and stay as safe as possible, you have will be safe. It is scary, I understand that, but being afraid isn’t helping the situation. Take a deep breath and think constructively. Become a hermit and find a way to socialize.
Secondly: Don’t let people shame you for not being afraid, I have seen a lot of social shaming because people aren’t deathly afraid of this virus being told they hate the NHS and want all old people to die. Here is what I am saying: I am doing my best to prevent the spread of the disease but I choose to not be afraid, I choose to offer help and bravery in this time of great uncertainty.
Let’s start with putting it in Perspective.
Grab a notepad and I want you to start a list of all the things you are scared of. All the real things you are emotionally scared of.
Scared of losing someone you love, scared of being judged or shouted at, scared of being ill, losing your job, your home. I want you to make a massive list of the things you fear and then one by one write down how you are going to deal with the situation if it arises. I want you to create contingency plans for each. If you have a plan, you have control and if that fear comes around, you can face it.
We often forget how much we have been through in our lives that we often feel beat down and defeated. But we are the ones who have defeated so much. This also isn’t the world’s first pandemic in recent years. The world has continued thriving even with pandemics every now and then. Don't let fear stop you doing anything. Be careful, be safe, call 111 if you are feeling really sick.
To summarize:
Identify what you are afraid of.
For example: I am afraid I will lose my job and therefore, lose my house.
Make a plan:
If I lose my job, I can always get another short term one to tide me over in this time of uncertainty. The government has offered mortgage support so I will have space to get back on my feet. There are always emergency cleaning jobs around.
I hope this little series helps you with your fears around the pandemic, it feels so out of our control but we just need to shift the focus back on to what we can control, how we can help and come together as a community and make the world a better place.
I would also like to offer my greatest gratitude and amazement to the NHS and any member of the medical professions. All the nurses, carers, private health care professionals that are working endlessly and at their own personal risk to help those most in need. These are the people who deserve medals.
