New strategies for managing your mental health lockdown in 2021 by Chartered Psychologist.
- Dr Sheena Kumar
- Feb 1, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 9, 2021
Sick of hearing lockdown tips? Yep – me too says Psychologist Dr. Sheena Kumar. We've all heard it now, for approaching a year now we have been hearing 'routine, exercise, connect, eat well', and whilst these things are undeniably essential, what do we do when they stop working?
Three things patients have been saying and what psychologists are advising to help you manage your mental health:
1. Previous lockdown strategies aren’t working
When lockdown first hit, the sun was out, the lack of the commute was a novelty. We quickly adapted to home workouts, online hangouts, and our favourite shows. Now approaching a year of this, we find the things that were initially helping us cope are wearing off. Tiredness and lethargy is through the roof, even the most positive of us are starting to dwindle.
This is due to the reduction in stimulation – journeying, being in an external environment, socialising, having a change of scenery – fuel our brains with energy. When we give out too much energy, we burn out. When we don’t have enough of an energy supply, we operate on ‘low battery’ making everything seem slower and harder.
How to combat this:
Mix it up
Change your routine.
Go to a different supermarket, do a different workout, speak to someone new, walk a new street. By changing what’s familiar we give our brains new stimuli helping us to feel fresher.
Swap your coping strategies.
If you’ve been cooking, try painting. If you have been reading, try meditation.
Get fresh air
A lack of fresh air reduces the oxygen to the brain, creating fatigue and that becoming an oh-to-familiar sense of dullness.
Creating moments of meaning.
Tune into your loved ones, turn off the tv and play a game or do some drawing, practice gratefulness. Something that gets you out of the 'sleep, eat, watch tv, repeat' routine. Giving your day meaning reduces staleness.
2. "I’m worried about lockdown ending".
Some people have experienced the most difficult times this past year, from losing loved ones, losing our identity, gaining loneliness, and being confronted with parts of us we haven’t had to look at before. People are worried about what life looks like after lockdown, and this is creating some anxiety.
How to combat this:
We can acknowledge that the external world has changed, and many of society's structures changing, we need to acknowledge that we have changed too. We won’t be the people we were in 2019 before we knew the word Covid-19. We are living through history, a once in a life-time experience. We need to find our new selves and our adaptations not just in routine, but in values and expectations.
3. I’m being pulled from every angle
Many are experiencing pressure to work, look after kids, keep up relationships and friendships, and yet are running on 0.
How to combat this:
As well as applying the above, we need to reassess what is essential for us to do and what isn’t. With life being harder, we need to be kind to ourselves, reduce expectations of ourselves, and also be able to say no. Do we need to take that call? Do we need another online hangout? Where do we need to turn off our laptops and draw a line to work? Do we need to watch another tv show? Those who find the power to say no will reap the rewards.
Remember, what your experiencing is normal, as we navigate the next few months use these tips, and if something doesn’t work try something new. Oh, and don’t forget to seek support where you need it.
