103-year-old Mexican overcomes covid-19 2:47
(CNN Spanish) -
Pandemic fatigue is a feeling of apathy, demotivation and mental exhaustion that a person suffers.
This type of fatigue affects the emotional health of millions of people in the world, not just those who have been infected with coronavirus.
Dr. Elmer Huerta explains some of the tips published July 7 in an article from the University of California, Los Angeles, to prevent pandemic fatigue from affecting your health.
You can listen to this episode on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform or read the transcript below.
Hello, I am Dr. Elmer Huerta and this is your daily dose of information about the new coronavirus.
Information that we hope will be useful to take care of your health and that of your family.
Today we will develop a relatively new concept: pandemic fatigue.
If you have been attentive or attentive to the episodes of our podcast, I am sure you remember the one on September 3, in which we talked about the consequences that covid-19 leaves in the person who overcomes the disease.
There we said that fatigue is one of the most frequent symptoms left by survivors.
The point is that when we talk about pandemic fatigue, we are not referring to that type of physical or body fatigue or tiredness, a consequence of the disease, but to mental fatigue that affects the emotional health of millions of people in the world, beyond those who were directly infected with the virus.
What is pandemic fatigue?
Pandemic fatigue is known as the feeling of apathy, demotivation and mental exhaustion that a person suffers, and whose origin is in the impact that the new coronavirus has caused in their life.
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Its cause is in the changes in lifestyle related to partial or total quarantines, the anxiety produced by the fear of being infected, the constant news focused on the misfortunes caused by the disease, the fear of losing a job, the loneliness caused due to the lack of contact with friends and family or the same feeling of hopelessness that makes us wonder: when is this nightmare going to end?
Pandemic fatigue is characterized by feeling mentally exhausted, helpless, sad, worried, frustrated and irritable, changes that can cause sleep disorders, appetite and mental concentration, as well as nervousness, irritability, lack of motivation to do things that you you like them, and want to separate yourself from others.
Tips to avoid pandemic fatigue
In this regard, an article from the University of California in Los Angeles, published on July 7, gives us some advice to see the future with more optimism and that this harmful pandemic fatigue does not negatively affect our mental health.
First
, take care of your body by practicing a healthy lifestyle.
Exercise daily, eat healthy, try to establish a healthy sleep routine.
That will give you energy, and it will strengthen your immune system.
Second,
limit your news consumption to one hour or less a day.
While it's good to be well-informed, immersing yourself in news all day overloads you with negative emotions and drains your energy.
Third
, reduce your stress.
Doing activities that calm or bring you joy can reduce your stress level.
For example, learning breathing exercises, practicing yoga, going for walks in the country, reading or watching comedies.
Fourth
, connect with others.
Remember that human beings are social creatures by nature.
Being alone and feeling isolated can add to stress and hopelessness.
Being careful to limit your physical contact with strangers to your home, making phone calls, video conferencing, chatting on social media, writing letters, or attending religious services online can go a long way.
Fifth
, accept your feelings.
Remember that trying to suppress or ignore feelings does not make them go away.
If you notice that your feelings of sadness or hopelessness are interfering with your daily activities, don't be afraid to seek the help of a mental health professional.
Sixth
, try positive self-talk.
Try not to think about what is going to happen.
Remember what Mahatma Gandhi said: in life there are two days that do not exist, yesterday and tomorrow.
The anguish of thinking about tomorrow can cause you to lose the beauty of today.
And
seventh
, create new life routines.
For example, set aside a time of day to do something that you enjoy and that makes you feel good physically, mentally, or emotionally.
These new routines or traditions may continue after the pandemic has passed.
The great danger of pandemic fatigue is that a fatigued population is more prone to relax and neglect when the initial peak of the epidemic decreases in its geographic region.
It is possible that much of the resurgence of the pandemic in Europe can be explained by a fatigued population that went out of control in the boreal summer.
In the Americas, although some are already talking about a second wave, we have not yet finished exiting the first.
Let's not let the fatigue of the pandemic make us lower our guard, relax and by not taking care of ourselves, we end up infected in a second wave.
Do you have questions about the coronavirus?
Send me your questions on Twitter, we will try to answer them in our next episodes.
You can find me at @Drhuerta.
If you think this podcast is helpful, help others find it by rating and reviewing it on your favorite podcast app.
We will be back tomorrow so be sure to subscribe to get the latest episode on your account.
And for the most up-to-date information, you can always head to CNNEspanol.com.
Thanks for your attention.
If you have any questions you can send them to Dr. Elmer Huerta via Twitter. You can also head over to CNNE.com/coronaviruspodcast for all episodes of our “Coronavirus: Reality vs. Reality” podcast. fiction".
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