Anxiety and Mental Health in a Pandemic
“Anxiety is a hot topic in our society today,” says Melony Brown, host of the “Zig Zag and One” podcast. As most of us enter our third week of social distancing or quarantine, we think Melony definitely has a point! The good news is that anxiety and mental health in a pandemic is the topic of this blog post, and Atlanta Innovative Counseling Center’s Dr. Bartolomucci has some great suggestions to help you overcome anxiety.
This blog post is the second in our series on anxiety taken from our very own Dr. Christi Bartolomucci’s guest series on the podcast “Zig Zag and One.” To hear the full podcast, click here. We’re so grateful to Melony for these inspiring conversations!
And, if you need information about how to explain anxiety to a child, please check out our blog post on this topic.
As COVID-19 has taken over our lives, many people find solace in social distancing within nature. Getting outside is a wonderful way to relieve anxiety!
What is the Difference between Worry and Anxiety?
Some amount of worry is normal and is a part of being human. Worry is usually specific, and it can range from general feelings of unease about your son or daughter staying out late to frequent and acute worrying about an elderly parent who lives alone.
According to Psychology Today, when worry morphs into anxiety, the feelings we experience become “more visceral in that we feel it throughout our bodies.” Anxiety is also a more generalized experience, where worry is specific.
Dr. Bartolomucci notes that anxiety is “our fear system. Our bodies are wonderfully made, and we are set up with a fear system that sends us signals when we are afraid so that we can move into action in some way.”
When our fear system overreacts, worry morphs into a more generalized sense of anxiety.
Sometimes this fear system can be more sensitive and can kick into action even when there’s not a stimulus. This causes us to feel anxiety that is not necessarily normal. Psychologists at Harvard University note that, “importantly, symptoms of normal anxiety do not interfere with daily functioning.”
If you are feeling a heightened sense of anxiety about more than one specific thing, and these feelings interfere with your daily life, then you might need to see a counselor to talk through your anxieties and give you the coping skills you need to deal with your anxiety.
Our experienced therapists at Atlanta Innovative Counseling Center can help you manage your anxiety and even overcome it if possible. Our therapists are skilled in telemental health and can work with you from a safe distance during this trying time.
What Causes Anxiety?
According to Dr. Bartolomucci, the following cause anxiety:
Neurotransmitter molecules work to keep our brains functioning, so when they cannot communicate effectively, we might experience fear and anxiety.
Genetics also play a role. Some people are more genetically predisposed to anxiety than others.
Learned response is another piece of the anxiety puzzle. We can become overly anxious through a series of events that train our brains to respond in this way
How we perceive what occurs also impacts anxiety levels. The way we think about what is causing the anxiety actually sends a message that causes an action response.
How Do We Know if Anxiety is Lurking?
When we experience anxiety, our “thinking brain” takes a back seat and anxiety takes over. We need coping mechanisms to help us get back to a rational place.
You might feel and/or experience the following when anxiety strikes:
Physical feeling of anxiety: heart racing, shortness of breath, tightening of the lungs, pit in your stomach
A slow build up of nervousness
Anxiety hitting you suddenly like a “brick wall”
Racing thoughts
Catastrophizing (Constantly imagining “what ifs?” and other worst-case scenarios)
How to Overcome Anxiety and Fear
During this time when we are all feeling some level of anxiety about COVID-19, you might be wondering what you can do if you feel like anxiety is overcoming you. You might ask, what strategies can you put into place to cope with anxiety?
Dr. Bartolomucci explains that “anxiety is a bully, and you can feel like you have to do what anxiety is telling you to do.” But that is not your only option.
You can empower yourself to stand up to the bully that is anxiety!
Here’s how you can empower yourself to stand up to anxiety and feel more in control:
Have a name for anxiety. Call it out when you feel it. The more you can see it as separate from yourself (and not your own truth speaking), the more you can talk to it and fight against it.
Breathe. Breathing isn’t just a hokey thing; it actually activates the calming part of our brain and regulates our heart rate, eye dilation, and temperature. Put your hand on your lower belly and breathe deeply. Watch your hand expand and your belly fill up like a balloon.
Once you have calmed down some, start answering your what-if questions. Pause and consider them (this places you back into the thinking, problem-solving part of your brain). What are the actual chances of this thing occurring? And if this happens, what will I do?
Write it out. By writing out your fears and anxieties, you can look back and see where the anxiety is taking you down a path that you might not want to go. And you can decide which of your anxious feelings you want to target and address.
Notice patterns of anxiety when you write and think through questions such as: what is my anxiety trying to teach me? This can also help you easily identify “aha” moments and work to calm yourself when you feel anxiety coming on.
How Do I Get Help for Anxiety?
As Dr. Bartolomucci explains to Melony Brown, “YOU CAN OVERCOME ANXIETY!” Dr. Bartolomucci and the dedicated team of therapists at AICC are passionate about helping you work through your anxiety and even learning to overcome it.
Follow us on Instagram (@atlantainnovativecounseling) for more tips to help you through the pandemic!
As we all cope with a virus that is spreading throughout our world, we need to take extra time to care for ourselves and our mental health. Reach out to friends and family if you need to talk, and if talking to a non-judgemental, objective therapist feels right for you, please contact us for more information. We would be happy to assist you in finding the right therapist and scheduling an appointment.