Anxiety and Covid 19

[Sarahbelle]

Hi.

I am extremely anxious about the current covid pandemic.

Feel as though it is living in my brain but my body feels the symptoms.

It causes me such panic and terror and all consuming

Trying to challenge my thinking but ver hard.

Any one else feel this. Any advice appreciated.

Thankyou.

[Sarahbelle]

Thankyou David,

Just downloaded it now and will be trying it out.

Have a happy day.

[Tfgirl]

I’m feeling extremely anxious too! I am a single mum living with my 2 kids at my elderly parents home. My father has medical concerns that are high risk. I work in childcare and haven’t been working due to previously having pneumonia. I’ve had a medical certificate till now and I can’t go back to work cuz of my concerns of my father and his health.

I feel sick and anxious and my work doesn’t expect me staying home to keep my family safe. I’ve now gotten a new medical certificate saying I’m suffering stress and GORD. Just sent it to them and I feel sick

[Sarahbelle]

So sorry to hear you are feeling so anxious and have a lot of people depending on you.

You sound very worried, but rest assure you are doing a great job with your family, after all they are your first priority....but with this comes demands on yourself. See if you can factor in some time for you to do something nice that you enjoy ....After all these years I have taken up crocheting again keeps my hands and mind busy when I sit down and am doing something productive at the same time.

Some days are going okay for me others not so like a bit of a roller coaster but I think that is so for many many people in this tough time. People on this forum have really supported me and kept me sane and motivated.

I feel you will also find this support.

You have a Dr certificate and that is great as work must accept that.

It is protection for you and your family.

Happy to chat with you again.

Take care.

[uncut_gems]

Sarahbelle,

so glad to hear you're managing to keep yourself busy! Tfgirl, welcome to the forums 🙂 You've definitely come to the right place and will hopefully find lots of support here. I had a difficult couple of days on Friday and Saturday but am feeling better. As you say Sarahbelle, it's a rollercoaster. Looking forward to talking more with both of you.

Warmly,

Gems

[Sarahbelle]

Hi Gems,

If I had a magic wand I would wipe all this virus away ----if only it was so easy.

Sorry to hear you were having some not so good days. Hope you are okay today and you have been able to enjoy a little sunshine. Here for you too.

Somedays are like that aren't they and it is hard to get the mind organised as the body kicks in and the strong feelings and all of a sudden we are in a spin.

Being busy helps for me, working from home has been good for me too however clocking off can be hard as you are always available. Have to get better at that.

It is so nice to have people like you who get it. So many things said by me on this forum I cannot talk to others about.

I lost my beautiful mum in August last year. She was my sounding board - she could pick my emotions and knew just what to say or do to move me forward. I miss her sooooo much, especially at the moment.

T girl hope you are going okay too.

Take good care everyone.

Sarahbelle.

[Sarahbelle]

I was just wanting other view points on the covid app.

I was thinking of downloading it however my constant alertness, anxiety and fear of the virus is stopping me.

I am afraid to have this information at hand all the time and fearful it may cause me panic if there is ever an alert or I may become obsessed with checking it.

Any opinions/advice welcome.

I understand the purpose of it but not sure if I can personally go there yet.

[uncut_gems]

Hi Sarahbelle,

It's a good question that's on a lot of people's minds nowadays. I think the decision to download it is a personal one that each person will have to make based on a lot of different factors, including of course how it might affect their mental health. I haven't looked into it too much yet, but my understanding is that the main purpose is to alert you if you've been within a certain distance of someone confirmed positive for a certain amount of time (fifteen minutes I think?). That means that rather than constantly bugging you with scary updates, it should only alert you once a day to let you know it's working, or to alert you to get tested. It doesn't send you any news updates or anything like that as far as I know.

It seems like it's meant to be a "set it and forget it" app, so if you decide you want to download it what you might do is just make a folder on your phone (you may already have one for miscellaneous/extra apps), toss it in there and forget it. If you decide to, feel free to share your experiences with it! I'm sure there are lots of people on the forums who are similarly curious.

[missep123]

Hi Sarahbelle,

I think you are showing a lot of insight! You were thinking about how the app may affect your behaviour and feelings.

I think you have also brought up some very relevant thoughts about the app. It might be worth starting a thread about and seeing what others think!

Here for you!

[Sarahbelle]

Thanks for your support everyone..

Why are the nights so hard ? Just when I think I am turning the corner. Beginning to calm my fears put tools in place to deal with my anxiety I all of a sudden feel such a slip backwards and all the physical symptoms surface and it all kicks in again. I do my meditation and sleep for a bit then wake and that seems to be it ......another camomile tea and trying to tell my self the mantra you are safe. I almost feel selfish that I feel this way. Day time although can be tricky but I am better as I can keep busy - working from home and doing things to distract myself. I know in this current climate many people are struggling with anxiety and sleep. Posting this message gives me the courage to say what I can't say to others as I know I don't have to wear a mask for you to cover my feelings, thoughts and insecurities. Thanks for being here for me.

Sarahbelle.

[missep123]

Hi Sarahbelle,

I am so glad that you were courageous to tell us what you can't say to others.

I know what you mean about nights being hard. I have found myself getting increasingly anxious at nights sometimes! The first step is recognising what is happening (which it sounds like you totally did)! You also have some great coping mechanisms in place with the meditation, tea and mantra.

I think sometimes we have to remind ourselves that although we may feel we are going 'backwards' with our progress, it's actually a really good learning opportunity and we can grow with it.

Here for you!