Health

15 Tips on How to Deal With Your Coronavirus Anxiety

It is important to note that everyone reacts differently, feels varying levels of emotional intensity, and copes with stress in unique ways. The following tips are general guidelines that may help you when you are feeling lonely, sad, anxious, or apprehensive about COVID-19 and the future. 

We are in a time of uncertainty. For the vast majority of us, this has us feeling apprehensive and fearful about our daily lives. We wonder when things will get back to normal and what our future will hold for us when we get there. Check Out Here: CTFO 10x PURE Ultimate Multi-Vitamin & Mineral Supplement

As we are urged to physically distance ourselves from one another in the wake of COVID-19, our daily routines, our workplaces, and our methods for coping have become unfathomably disrupted. Coupled with the constant barrage of news, it is only natural to feel overwhelmed, stressed, and anxious.  With this said, we have 15 tips to help you manage both your physical and mental wellbeing during this unprecedented pandemic.

Read More:

1) Reach Out & Socially Connect With Loved Ones.

While it is important to keep ourselves physically distanced from everyone but those within your nuclear household, this does not mean that you have to cut off all social interaction. Engaging in complete social isolation is actually going to have a very detrimental impact on your mental health and cause you to view your current situation in a much darker light. Instead, use electronic means to reach out to your friends and family members on a regular basis. For some, this could be every few days and for others, this could be on a daily basis.

  • Use your smartphone to call your family members,
  • Use your smartphone to text your friends
  • Use your smartphone to FaceTime, Skype, or video chat with others.
  • Use a laptop or desktop to play online games. If video games do not suit your taste, there are other options like virtual card games, pool, and more.
  • Use a laptop or desktop to watch Netflix, rent movies, or engage in other virtual activities that have a social component to them.

It is important to note that while social media can help you feel connected, this doesn’t give you that one-on-one time that you may need to feel personally cared for. Social media can also suck you into a loop of negativity, so minimizing this and engaging in the above ways, is a better option.

2) Keep Yourself Physically Active.  

How often we choose to exercise can have a direct impact on how good or bad we feel. With the inability to have contact with others, it may feel easier to just stay inside and sit around watching television or movies.

While this is okay in moderation, it can lead to unhealthy behaviors that make you feel worse. Instead, get up and move around the home, jump on the treadmill, or go outside for a walk while maintaining physical distancing measures. Pair this with eating healthy meals and drinking lots of water!

3) Give Yourself Permission to Acknowledge Emotions.

Rather than pushing away the anxiousness, fear, or stress that you are feeling, acknowledge it. We are in an unprecedented situation that has massive negative ramifications for the world, so it is natural to feel a wide range of emotions.

Some of us are missing out on weddings, graduations, and planned trips, while others are praying for loved ones that are immunocompromised.  Understanding why you feel the way you do and then drawing it back to the bigger picture will help keep the situation in perspective.

4) Put Boundaries in Place.  

Due to most countries shifting to only having essential businesses open, a lot of individuals are faced with working-from-home. This new reality can be very difficult when you have a spouse and children in the same space as you, 24-7.

It is important to set up a dedicated workspace and place boundaries around your work hours. Having your family respect your boundaries so that you can be productive during the day, will help you combat the fear surrounding financial matters. For those who may not have a job, you still need an area where you can decompress, relax, and get away from the stress.

You may want to look for a job online, get away from the always-on television, or get some peace and quiet from your family. This is okay. Create a dedicated space for you, so that you can work, recharge, or plan ahead.

5) Use Acceptance to Keep Fear in Check.

Ever think about the worst-case scenario? A lot of us have a tendency to over-catastrophize or overthink our situations. We may find ourselves constantly worried about catching COVID-19 or incessantly checking up on our parents, grandparents, and loved ones because our imagination is stressing us out.  One way to get around this barrage of fearful thinking is to actually engage it.

Take a few minutes to think about what the worst-case scenario is for yourself or your life, acknowledge it, and then let it go. This enables you to become emotionally prepared for the worst without looping you into a negative feedback cycle. How to confine it? Give yourself a limited amount of time.

Read More:

6) Have a Routine? Keep It!

One of the major issues that people are currently facing as a result of the coronavirus is not having a sense of normalcy. This lends itself to feeling lost, disorganized, and perhaps a little chaotic since life as we know it is much different than what it was two months ago. To help deal with this, stick to your daily routine as much as you can.

  • If you regularly work out in the mornings or the evenings, block this time out in your daily schedule and stick with it.
  • Find a home routine that is engaging, uplifting, and upbeat and pair it with a playlist of all your favorite tracks.
  • Eat dinner at a specific time in the evening, keep it.
  • Meal prep on Sundays? Do this!
  • Take the dog out to park on Thursdays? Maybe simulate this in your backyard.
  • Most of all, keep your sleep schedule the sam


By taking a look at your daily routine and locking in the components that you can keep the same, you create a sense of normalcy for yourself. This maintains feelings of control, happiness, and predictability.

7) Understand That What You Control Has Limitations.

There is only so much you can do. Read that again. You have the capability to control your situation by practicing physical distancing, washing your hands, and taking precautions when being outside or going to work, but it is also important to practice acceptance.

Acceptance in that you are doing the best that you can give the circumstances you are in and that there is only so much that you have control over and can do, both for yourself and for others. While it may be hard to imagine that this will come to an end, this will pass and, in the meantime, just keeping doing what you are doing. By practicing this type of acceptance, you keep yourself in a calmer frame of mind.

Coronavirus Anxiety warning

8) Do Not Engage With Negative Peer Pressure.

A major source of stress and anxiety stems from other people who may choose to ignore health guidelines. They may call you up and ask to come over or they may negatively engage with you in discussions that go against current recommendations. Please understand that engaging with negative peer pressure not only puts you and your family at risk, but it creates a lot of rifts between individuals.

If someone asks to come over, simply tell them that you are practicing physical distancing and that, while you would love to see them, you cannot do so at this point in time. If someone engages with you in a negative way with regards to a discussion online or over the phone, stick to the facts and stay positive. End the conversation before getting defensive or political. Remember that everyone is fearful, stressed, and anxious right now which may cause them to act irrationally.

9) Distance Yourself From the News.

One of the things that many of us do in times of emergency, overloads ourselves with information. This is because we like to find solutions and be prepared, but when we have a steady stream of information, this can work against us.

Not only is staying on top of updates by the hour, exhausting, but it can also cause a lot of stress and impact your ability to work, relax, and take care of yourself.  It is highly recommended that you check the news once per day, that being in the morning.

  • Shut the news off 1-2 hours before bedtime.
  • Shut the news off and all social media feeds while eating your meals. Why?
  • Stressful news during mealtimes can cause you to consume more which may have a negative impact on your physical and mental health.

Everything that is urgent or pressing will either be irrelevant the next morning or will be broadcasted in the morning.

10) Re-evaluate the Small, Fun Things & Do More of Them!

A fantastic way to manage our emotions is to engage in activities that brighten our day. Spend some time focusing on your favorite hobbies or pick up something new. For example, if you love reading but rarely get the change, now is a great time to jump into the series that is collecting dust on the bookshelf.

Or, maybe you have an instrument sitting in the corner of the study, pull it out and pass the time with some good tunes. If you want to learn something new, there are plenty of tutorials and online courses that can be found for free or you can attend the numerous live music concerts being broadcasted online.

The trick here is to list out all of the small, fun things that you used to love doing and schedule a time to do them more while you are isolated at home. Not only can this spark inspiration and a new-found love for old hobbies, but it can also bring a lot of joy to your daily routine.

Read More:

 11) Take a Day to Become Prepared.

If you have been laid off from work, have become sick, or have to look after your children due to school being out, take some time to prepare yourself for the immediate future. Talk with your employer about getting your record of employment so you can apply for employment insurance, understand if you qualify for sick pay, or see if you qualify for emergency aid. By understanding what benefits you qualify for, you can combat the immediate anxiety you feel about your financial situation.

 12) Choose to Only Consume Information From Reputable News Sources.

While staying informed is critical to your health and wellbeing, it is also important to only consume information from reputable news sources. Acting on inaccurate information can be dangerous, so it is best to take some time to choose the news sources you want to receive updates from. By doing this, you can focus on only the facts and the guidelines that you need to know in order to keep yourself safe.

 13) Consider Setting Yourself Up for Telemedicine.

As much as we would like to have an end-date in mind for this pandemic, the truth is that we just don’t know how long it will take to subside. With this said, if you haven’t done this already, consider setting yourself up for telemedicine services with your doctor.

Telemedicine applications allow you to receive virtual care when you need it without going into your doctor’s office or hospital. Not only does this minimize your exposure to healthcare staff, but it keeps you away from hospitals, emergency departments, and those who are ill.

 14) Reach Out About Your Concerns!

If you find yourself stuck with some major concerns or negative thinking patterns that you cannot break, reach out about your worries with those that you trust. Not only can this help them, but it can help calm you down and see that you are not alone. If reaching out to a family member or friend isn’t a possibility for you, consider reaching out via a helpline instead. They will listen to you without judgment and point you in the right direction.

 15) Slow Yourself Down & Practice Mindfulness or Other Relaxation Techniques.  

It is very important to slow yourself down and pay attention to the present moment. Hearing, understanding, and acknowledging your thoughts, feelings, and the world around you will help you understand yourself better and your current place in the world.

In being mindful, you will understand what drives your emotions and behavior, find new ways to reconnect with your sensations, and become clearly aware of yourself from moment to moment. When you are more aware of yourself within the moment, you have the ability to see your thought patterns and, in turn, learn how to deal with them and let them go in a productive manner.

This awareness can help reduce stress and anxiety. Consider practicing mediation or breathing exercises to aid in this mindfulness pursuit. While there is a lot of fear, uncertainty, and apprehension at this time, there is also an opportunity to reconnect with yourself, your loved ones, and the activities that make you happy on a daily basis.

Take this time to prepare yourself, strengthen your mental resolve, and engage in a lifestyle that is healthy for you. Physical distancing does not have to be dreadful, lonely, or isolating, but instead can be fun, enlightening, and insightful if we can learn to understand and manage our emotions.  

Read More:

Join The Discussion