Covid-19: Things to consider during lockdown

Pull quote: “None of us are alone in this,” said Craig Palmer, counselling psychologist at Life Roseacres Hospital.

“I think it is important to remember that we are all going through this together, not only as a community or country, but throughout the world – in other words, none of us are alone in this.”

These are the words of counselling psychologist at Life Roseacres Hospital Craig Palmer who spoke to the GCN about how to stay focused and positive during the lockdown.

The first aspect Palmer touched on was routine, which he explained can help many feel a sense of control during a very uncertain time.

“In a lockdown, our usual daily structure has been taken away, or at least, significantly altered,” he said.

“A lockdown is also something which is imposed on us and subsequently we can experience a loss of control.

“By having a routine during a lockdown period, especially one that we ourselves can create or decide on, brings some control back into our lives.

“Lockdown inherently brings with it a lot of unknown and uncontrollable circumstances and questions which we might not have answers for.

“Bringing control back into our own home can only empower us, as we take back aspects of our lives that we have in our control.

“A routine can help us realise that we, in fact, do have control over some things and allows us to focus on those things, rather than channelling time and energy into things that are not within our control.”

ALSO READ: Covid-19: Makause residents taught about Covid-19

Palmer offered the following tips for maintaining a routine during lockdown:

• Try to make your routine or daily goals realistic.

• Although routine involves structure, you still need to be flexible.

• With routine and setting boundaries, you need to make use of certain times or certain places.

For example, as a family you could all eat breakfast together at around 8am or an individual can decide to exercise before dinner time.

In terms of places, an example could be that as a family we all eat breakfast at a specific table in the house or a person might choose to exercise in the bedroom.

“If we are eating whenever or exercising wherever, then it might become more difficult to maintain the routine because a narrative of anything goes becomes paramount,” said Palmer.

• Create and implement routine or structure surrounding the family as a whole (the us), but remember individuals should also have certain aspects of their routine that can be their’s alone (the me).

Mental health, anxiety and depression are also at the forefront during the lockdown.

Palmer touched on this and why it could be so easy for a person to slip into depression during a lockdown and how they might avoid it.

“Our mental health and emotional well-being, including things like depression and anxiety, could be compromised quite easily in lockdown.

“With a lack of structure or routine, we might find ourselves in a head space or mindset of anything goes.

“This might sound all well and good, almost like a holiday, but if we apply this way of being or living to certain factors, like exercise, sleeping patterns, eating habits or use of substances (like consuming alcohol or smoking cigarettes), we can quickly and easily see how our anxiety can increase and moods can take a dip, especially for an extended period of time,” he said.

“I would encourage people to try their best to get their ‘ducks in a row’.

“If we don’t get our ducks in a row, we are not giving ourselves a sporting chance when it comes to depression or anxiety.”

ALSO READ: Your blood is still needed by SANBS amid Covid-19 pandemic

Palmer used the example of food.

“We have all heard the phrase ‘you are what you eat’ and if anything goes when it comes to the foods we are putting into our bodies and we simply eat junk food, it’s only a matter of time before we feel like junk,” he said.

Another key aspect to our mental health and emotional well-being, Palmer said, is our social life and interaction with others.

“Given that depression involves an aspect of social withdrawal, and the lockdown involves a strict adherence to social distancing, we need to communicate with the world outside of our home as much as we can,” he said.

“Call relatives and friends, make video calls, Skype, send messages, etc.

“We are social beings, even us introverts.

“If we withdraw completely from others, then we are only adding a key ingredient to the recipe for depression.”

Palmer noted that as human beings we also need fresh air and sunlight.

“If we have to be confined to our homes, at least try to not stay indoors the whole time,” he said.

“Sit outside if you can, walk in the garden if you have one, get some fresh air and get some sunlight.”

Palmer encourages parents not to keep their children in the dark and maintain balance.

“We can’t keep our children in the dark about everything because they will have questions and are curious,” said Palmer.

“Ultimately, they also have a right to know, as much as we as parents do.”

Palmer further explained that your child’s age should play a role in how much they should know and how it should be explained.

“By not sharing anything or sharing everything with them, we could be creating or feeding the fear or restlessness.

“We need to simply communicate with our children and facilitate for them to be able to communicate with us.

“We need to encourage them to do so in such a way that they feel comfortable to come to us with any questions they have and things to share.

“We also need to acknowledge and validate their feelings,” said Palmer.

“This will help them feel more secure. Remember, children have up and down days, just as we do.

“We can’t expect them to be consistent, but allow inconsistencies for ourselves or other adults.”

Palmer said parents should also accept the fact that if they have a child or children in the house it is going to be a mess, loud and crazy.

“But just remember, one day your child or children are going to have their own lives and leave the house and then you will miss the mess, the loudness and the chaos,” he said.

“Make the most of this time together.

“There will always be time to make more money, but time and precious moments together, you can’t get those back.”

ALSO READ: Watch: Dr Manning, Bertha Gxowa CEO speaks on the hospital’s precautionary measures in place in response to Covid-19

Palmer recommended the community stay informed and up to date with Covid-19 and lockdown news, but warned that they must not become obsessed with and consumed by everything going on.

“This does not just pertain to television or radio news, but also to social media platforms, such as Facebook or Twitter.

“Turning off all devices for a day can do wonders for your mindset, heart and soul,” he said.

Palmer reminded everyone to take everything one day at a time.

“Much like an intense negative feeling like anger, rage or hatred, we need to be mindful of the fact that this too shall pass,” he said.

“One day, this will all be a memory.

“But for now let us just take it one day at a time.

“Let us spend time together and focus on the things that really matter, taking comfort in the fact that although there is a lot of unknown, there is a God and He is watching over us.”

 

* Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news

Dear reader,

As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.

Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).

 

Have a story?

Contact the newsroom by emailing: Melissa Hart (Editor) germistoncitynews@caxton.co.za, Leigh Hodgson (News Editor) leighh@caxton.co.za or Busi Vilakazi (Journalist) busiv@caxton.co.za.

Also follow us on: