Social Anxiety & COVID. *

27 May 2020

This post was written by a contributor.

There’s a clear link between being stuck in the house all day for 10 weeks, and feeling anxious. The more time you have to mull over your feelings, the more cloudy your mind can get, and before you know it you’re climbing the walls and wishing you had a handy paper bag to breathe into!

Whether you’re worrying about your body, or what will happen in the future, there are plenty of stress triggers going round at the moment. And anybody who deals with anxiety knows it’s not as simple as clicking your fingers and the cacophony of emotions disappearing.

So, when you don’t have many other options (cheers, Coronavirus), what are you supposed to do when you feel the tension building? Hopefully, these tips will help!




Stop watching the news. Okay, for all we know, you may enjoy listening to the newsreader talk about everything that’s wrong with the world – no judgement here if so! Yes, it’s good to keep yourself informed about the situation, but hearing about individual political advisors breaking their own rules isn’t going to fill you with warmth and happiness… actually, you may want to throw something at the TV (we’ve been there). The truth is that there is a lot to fret over currently, so it may be worth taking a break from the endless cycle of bad news. Stay blissfully ignorant; don’t obsess over the stats, just find out what affects you directly and stick to that.

Indulge your sweet tooth. If you enjoy eating junk food – and who doesn’t? – you may not have enjoyed isolation, what with the limited takeaway options, and supermarkets restricting the amount of each product that you can buy. But, that’s about to change, thanks to the introduction of CBD gummies. Most sweets are packed with refined sugars, and may increase the risk of contracting diabetes. These gummies are different, as they are full of cannabinoids, which are nutrients that play a big role in keeping your body healthy. Not only do they help with liver and brain function, get this – they also boost your immune system! So, indulging your sweet tooth could help your chances of staying COVID-free and ease any anxiety you have.


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Get virtual help. When anxiety gets too much for you to control, you shouldn’t feel like you have nowhere to turn. If it’s hard to share the full extent of your upset with your loved ones, some professionals are still accepting appointments. They are held online via Skype, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams, and it’s an opportunity for you to speak to an expert and get things off your chest. Anybody who’s experienced anxiety before should consider reaching out to their GP or therapist.

Social isolation is horrible if you suffer from anxiety and feel tension more than others might. Hopefully, these tips will help you feel less isolated. Now, the restrictions are slowly easing. With that in mind, you can head to some safe public spots (e.g. parks and seafronts) where there will be more people around, and maybe that will make you feel more comfortable and socialised, from a distance. Sure, these strangers aren’t quite the support group you want, like your family and friends, but for some, that’s better than being in the house alone all day. Of course, you may run into a few people you know coincidentally… *wink*. But it’s so important to remember: only do what you feel comfortable doing, and really we should all still be staying indoors more than we are going out. Maybe allow yourself a couple of walks/trips to the local park per day? And you can always call your mum or sister when you’re doing that! Covid compromises, eh?

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