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Coronavirus, the media and mental health

I work in local government and everyone is running around putting stuff in place mostly to cover our backsides. The advice changes by the hour and work we have spent a day on becomes obsolete. This is placing a lot of stress and anxiety on staff. A lot of this is down to the shambolic way the government has dealt with things.
 
Rodrat said:
I work in local government and everyone is running around putting stuff in place mostly to cover our backsides. The advice changes by the hour and work we have spent a day on becomes obsolete. This is placing a lot of stress and anxiety on staff. A lot of this is down to the shambolic way the government has dealt with things.
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Disappointing to hear, but to be fair I doubt any of our parties would be able to form a government able to cope with this in an efficient manner. And I am no Tory so please don't think this is a political point.
 
Heckyman said:
and PFM of course!
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I was posting on the Covid19 III thread, but spotted this excellent thread commenced by tiggers.

Im not sure that pfm is indeed a good place to read about the pandemic. Some of the conspiracy theories and political spinning being posted isn’t conducive to good thoughts. IMHO. What it has done tho is confirmed a previous bouts of mild diagnosed anxiety( 4 years ago) is well under control!
 
For those of you working from home for the first time, it is going to be tough if you're also landed with the bloody kids. Your concentration will be fractured repeatedly and it will be a major league PITA. That alone is going to be the toughest bit of the whole thing.

If you're missing the office banter then use Skype to make calls or just type a conversation, it can make a big difference to hear a familiar voice from the office.

If you're going to be on your own for long periods for the first time then I find it helpful to have the radio on when I'm not working, radio 4 seems to be better because of the talking but, as that's going to be all about the flipping virus, a music station would be better. The idea is to not let the silence get to you.
 
Clearly not the highest priority for the resilient PFM massive but how is everyone doing?

Not sure if this is the best place to put it but one of the things that struck me this morning is that this is an absolute perfect environment for on-line gambling problems to rocket. I wonder what the online 'arcades' are doing about this (apart from counting the money coming in)?
 
Last night I woke up at about 03:00 hrs.

My wife was sat up, crying gently so as not to disturb me. (it didn't, I needed a pee)

She is worried about her parents, who are in their 80's and live 200 miles away.

There is no answer to quell or allay someone's fears in this situation.

Now Mein Schatz is busy in the garden, (which I know she dislikes) getting some vitamin D.
 
To give all an idea, I have been living with this situation for two and a half years - being isolated in an apartment, my driving licence taken away, and not even allowed to cycle or exercise for health reasons.

Long term, it is horrible I can assure you -and I'm personally somewhat hoping that it serves to give people an appreciation of what elderly widows or widowers, along with the handicapped and disabled, might have to endure for a life time. It just might make people more sympathetic to the plight of others.

It is difficult to explain but over time the enthusiasm to throw one's self into projects anew turns into a Jim Royle lifestyle that bears little of no resemblance to that which went before. I think most will never experience that prior to their eighties - and I damned well hope they don't have to. They may well get a taste of it however, should this set of circumstances continue for a few months. That will do the elderly and infirmed no harm. Maybe they will be treated with the same respect and care that they are in other nations I've travelled to.
 
wylton said:
My youngest daughter, who is a very social person, is worried about isolation, having been told to work from home for four months. The upside is though, that having had to cancel the planned family meal at a restaurant last night, they came to us for the evening instead, which was really nice.

I'm the opposite to my daughter; I quite like my own company.

I reckon it's a good idea to choose your source of information and stick with it. Try to keep update with the latest news, but avoid most of the media that is over sensationalising the situation, including normally reliable sources of news such as C4 news. It really bugs me when the news reporter asks a question of a studio guest and then asks another exactly the same question in the hope that he or she will get the answer that they were looking for.

For my part, I retired yesterday, so I no longer have to go to work!

We have a UK holiday next week; it's an isolated cottage, so we'll cook our own meals, keep ourselves amused, and take the dog for walks.
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Places with holiday cottages are saying stay away. Rightly IMHO. We have a cottage booked at the end of May - no way we'll be going, even if there's an upswing. Signs around me imploring tourists to stay away, including notices posted by Gwynedd council saying the entire region has twenty five or so ICU beds.
Audiobooks are a great distraction. And great soporific if you're having difficulty sleeping.
 
Roger Adams said:
To give all an idea, I have been living with this situation for two and a half years - being isolated in an apartment, my driving licence taken away, and not even allowed to cycle or exercise for health reasons.

Long term, it is horrible I can assure you -and I'm personally somewhat hoping that it serves to give people an appreciation of what elderly widows or widowers, along with the handicapped and disabled, might have to endure for a life time. It just might make people more sympathetic to the plight of others.

It is difficult to explain but over time the enthusiasm to throw one's self into projects anew turns into a Jim Royle lifestyle that bears little of no resemblance to that which went before. I think most will never experience that prior to their eighties - and I damned well hope they don't have to. They may well get a taste of it however, should this set of circumstances continue for a few months. That will do the elderly and infirmed no harm. Maybe they will be treated with the same respect and care that they are in other nations I've travelled to.
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Rough.

There are quite a few of us on pfm who have been in a similar situation for many years.

A club nobody wants to be in.

As you say, this crisis will give some people some insight into what is common place.

I do not know about other nations, as I only live in one.
 
Seeker_UK said:
Clearly not the highest priority for the resilient PFM massive but how is everyone doing?
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Oddly.. a little more settled since the latest measures were announced. IMHO still too little too late, but they do in a way see us a bit further along and hopefully closer to whatever the final outcome is.
I was very tempted towards Diazepam yesterday afternoon, but 'hung in there'. Nothing dreadful happened. (At least to me..)
 
The chancellor has told the airlines they will not get any financial help until they have exhausted all other avenues including involving share holders.

the next pm without doubt!
 
Diazepam is great. You see the apocalypse unfolding on various media channels in front of your eyes 24/7, and you don't give a monkey's.
 
Bob McC said:
The chancellor has told the airlines they will not get any financial help until they have exhausted all other avenues including involving share holders.

the next pm without doubt!
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Controversial suggestion no doubt but how do others see the role that the airlines can play in a post this virus world? One lesson everyone will have to learn from this is that any dangerous viral illness (and there will be many more) can be uncontrollably quickly distributed across the planet, utilising current systems of rapid and relatively free international transport.
 
No problem. The media (which is the main issue that is responsible for a change in one's mental health i would have thought right now), is projecting national and global issues. One can divide figures to highlight for instance, the likely cost to an individual in the UK per day for every life saved through flattening the curve. There's so many crossover points in my mind - when you start to play with the figures that are available and applying the maths. Maybe just cut out all the "side threads" ? Hits me but it seems to solve a conundrum.
 
Roger Adams said:
Diazepam is great. You see the apocalypse unfolding on various media channels in front of your eyes 24/7, and you don't give a monkey's.
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Not really.
Yep.. I could dose myself up into such a state of insensibility/indifference, but my meagre supply would not last long. And anyway.. that's not how I use the stuff. It really is a last resort, used in very small doses to quell the worst effects of extreme anxiety if they cannot be quelled by self talk/relaxation techniques.
I've used a total of about 3 mg over the last two weeks.
 
A couple of extracts from some stuff I'm pulling together:

What happens:

Feelings- Fear – anxiety – uncertainty – anger – panic

Thoughts- Overthinking – ruminating- hyperawareness of cough – we are all going to die

Behaviours- Compulsively seeking information on social media/news – stopping usual activities – selfchecking temperature etc.

Physical symptoms- Tight chest – muscle aching – have I got a fever? – poor sleep

Think for a moment of where you find yourself at the moment. Which area(s) are you struggling with most?

Helpful Strategies:

Feelings fear – anxiety – uncertainty – anger – panic
TRY: You are not alone – reach out and connect – share that you feel vulnerable – Ask people ‘how are you’ and answer people honestly

Thoughts overthinking – ruminating- hyperawareness of cough – we are all going to die
TRY: Distraction – reframing the thought – taking one day a time – worry time

Behaviours compulsively seeking information on social media/news – stopping usual activities – selfchecking temperature
TRY: limit access to news/ media to twice daily – only look at reliable new resources – keep busy

Physical symptoms Tight chest – muscle aching – have I got a fever – poor sleep
TRY: Exercise – Focus on breathing – mindfulness – sleep hygiene technique
 
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