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home / 世界杯决赛2022

how to limit anxiety in the face of a tsunami of bad covid news

social support, breathing routines, proper sleep and exercise can help overcome many of the stressors that come with the pandemic.

by susan schwartz

dec 22 2021
read time 4 minute read
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we have no control over, say, the path of the omicron covid-19 variant, when the rising number of cases will peak, or when the spike in hospitalizations will trend downward.
we do, however, have a measure of control over how we respond to all that.

the past days have brought a veritable tsunami of pandemic-related bad news . feels like 2020 all over again. we asked academics and mental-health professionals how not to allow anxiety or fear to get the better of us.

vanier college psychology professor marlene grossman asks herself this question: ” ‘can i control this situation?’ and if the answer is no, i have learned, out of necessity, to let it go,” she said.
and so she wears a mask, practises social distancing and chooses who she socializes with. limiting social contacts doesn’t mean not staying connected. think facetime, zoom and socially distanced walks (again).
rely on reputable news sources and limit exposure to social media, grossman recommends.
marlene grossman, professor of psychology at vanier college, reminds people that limiting social contacts doesn’t mean not staying connected.
marlene grossman, professor of psychology at vanier college, reminds people that limiting social contacts doesn’t mean not staying connected. dario ayala / montreal gazette files
“the other thing i tell myself is to stop the ‘what ifs?’ what if i go into work and get covid? what if i go into the pharmacy and someone there is sick? the ‘what ifs?’ can make you crazy. don’t play that game.”
to stop catastrophic thinking means catching yourself and turning, instead, to a mindfulness or a breathing exercise. grossman does “lots of breathing exercises,” meditates, and has twice-weekly online exercise sessions with a trainer. it all helps.
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anna weinberg, an associate professor in the department of psychology at mcgill university, recommends a technique known as box breathing, used by navy seals to relieve stress: set a timer to remind yourself to take a one-minute break from time to time. exhale to a count of four, hold your breath for a four-count, inhale at the same pace, then hold air in your lungs for a count of four before exhaling. repeat the cycle.
stress is a risk factor for a broad range of health problems, including anxiety and depression, and several elements make the coronavirus pandemic an especially powerful stressor, she said: among them are its chronic nature, the way it can erode such sources of comfort as social support and the sustained uncertainty that has permeated our lives because of it.
as canada research chair in clinical neuroscience, weinberg’s research focuses on how depression and anxiety, two of the most common illnesses, develop. levels are already heightened worldwide and may well increase as the pandemic continues, so “it’s important to promote strategies we can use to buffer against the adverse effects of stress,” she said.
evidence shows that social support is extremely beneficial in protecting against stress: the pandemic, of course, undercuts our ability to get social support. “but we know it is one of the best ways to not be overcome by stressors,” weinberg said. schedule socially distanced walks outdoors, ideally in park spaces.
set a timer to remind yourself to take a one-minute break from time to time, says anna weinberg, an associate professor in mcgill’s psychology department.
set a timer to remind yourself to take a one-minute break from time to time, says anna weinberg, an associate professor in mcgill’s psychology department. courtesy of anna weinberg
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sleep is “really important to allow people to deal effectively with stress.” but when we’re stressed, sleep is affected: so leave the screens out of the bedroom, she advises. “and don’t read the news before you go to sleep.”
have a set bedtime routine, incorporating whatever calming ritual works for you — a cup of herbal tea, maybe, or a bath.
there is significant evidence that exercise, including walking and hiking, is an extremely effective stress-buffering strategy, weinberg said, “it’s a good way to stay sane and healthy during the pandemic winter.”

doing 10 minutes of what you consider high-intensity exercise “is really beneficial in modulating the sympathetic nervous system response to stress,” she said.

“it doesn’t change the situation, but it does allow you to control how you to respond to it.”

psychotherapist moira luce of montreal’s argyle institute observes that “we are nervous — and we feed on each other’s nervousness.” anxiety felt by one person tends to be mirrored in another — “that emotional contagion.”

practise gratitude, she advises. research has shown that gratitude displaces anxiety: we can’t feel two things at once.
do something enjoyable every day, clinical psychologist mara riff says.
do something enjoyable every day, clinical psychologist mara riff says. courtesy of mara riff
sometimes we must reach for gratitude in the smallest ways, luce said. “express gratitude for the patience you have shown since the start of the pandemic nearly two years ago — and for the fact that you are adapting.

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“be grateful for trusting your gut and choosing to make a difficult decision. that, to me, is a big thing.”

do something enjoyable every day, said clinical psychologist dr. mara riff, director and co-founder of westmount wellness centre openspaceclinic , whether it’s watching a favourite television show or cooking a dish you love.

“rather than living your life in what feels like a constant state of crisis, it’s better to say, ‘this is the new normal and i am adjusting.'”
don’t be rigid, she said, because things will change very quickly.
and as grossman reminds us: be kind to others, because everybody is struggling.
sschwartz@postmedia.com

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susan schwartz, montreal gazette
susan schwartz, montreal gazette

we used typewriters when i started at the gazette, and big black rotary phones. nearly everyone smoked. today’s newsroom looks different but the work – reporting and informing my readers – remains constant and rewarding. i am grateful to my adviser at mcgill, where i was a neurobiology major, for steering me to journalism. undoubtedly, he realized i wasn’t cut out for neurobiology.

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