Bramley resident and mental health first aider PAUL ABRAHAM runs www.headingonwards.com. Here, he writes about surviving lockdown negativity…
Living in “lockdown” is a completely new experience for us all and hopefully this will be the only time in our lives that we will have cope with anything like this.
Because of media saturation of the situation it is very easy to feel negative, especially when you hear conspiracy theories and see the bad in people as they stockpile as much as they can with no regard for anyone else. Never did I think I would see footage of women physically fighting over toilet rolls, if it wasn’t so sad it would be hilarious.
The rumour and speculation can fuel anxiety and so having access to good quality information about the virus and situation can help you feel more in control.
If you can limit the time you spend watching news programmes to just one programme a day and/or visit the Gov.uk website for the latest updates for a set period of time will help.
It is understandable that we are all going to have “down” days, so how can we cope with them when they arrive?
Make an “action plan” which could include watching an uplifting and favourite film, or reading a book which you’ve had for years but have been too busy to read until now.
Thanks to the internet there are number of on-line courses (many are free which is even better!) that you can enrol in, whether it’s to learn a new language or skill.
Via social media or by phone why not catch up with friends and relatives that you’ve not had contact with for a while. The wider your support team can be the better for everyone as we all need to support each other in these testing times.
I personally listen to a large number of “Motivational” CDs, DVDs and also uploads on YouTube – and can highly recommend Eddie Pinero.
He has plenty of quality videos on YouTube most of which last approximately five minutes and which I find a tremendous help when my mental health needs a boost.