Mental Health & Peoples Perceptions
(*Image Curtesy of Action For Happiness-FaceBook Page)
Returning to normality as lockdown restrictions ease up brings about powerful thoughts and feelings about our ability to re-enter society. Some will be ahead of others and you may wonder why once we have already encountered changes we are still looking at how this will occur. Imagine the life of a shielder/vulnerable persons over the last year and what they have be subjected to and what they have sacrificed.
This blog focuses on the thoughts and fears of those shielders and vulnerable as lockdown eases. We’ll tackle some key points to consider, utilise Mental Health quotes from Action For Happiness, before a comprehensive checklist to stay safe and in control. Finally, we‘ll take a look at three superb support mechanisms; Emotion Wheels, Visualisation and Mind Mapping, that should enable a smoother, less stressful transition.
You might ask why is this still relevant when shielding ceased on the 1 April? Can you imagine being inside 4 walls listening to all the scary COVID stories? Most of us have got used to all the changes over a period of time as rules are being relaxed. The thoughts of masks, safe social distancing, queues outside shops, empty high streets, plastic screens. Interpretation of the world is unique and perhaps shielders and the most vulnerable have only managed to turn the key, breathe air through the letter box, walk to the gate or accept socially distanced deliveries in an entire year!
We look at this through the eyes of those with LTHC’s. The impact of lockdown on those who are vulnerable and especially the shielders. A blog of quotes and pondering. Simple pleasures and appreciation for what we have. People smiling whilst mowing lawns and cleaning cars!
Each step outside the door or the breeze hitting your face involves significant change.
What have we missed? Have our bodies and minds changed?
Does the vaccine make it safer?
Will strategies be there?
Can you adjust? How long will it take?
To start, our top image and something we should all remember is the ‘If All You Did Today Was Make It Through The Damn Day Then Be Proud’. Remember this at all times even if it is difficult!
Spreading a little joy, hope and optimism with their creative quotes are the Action For Happiness Organisation. The perfect tonic for a month where mental health week falls. They have been a revelation over social media with their daily quotes (such as the profile image) and well being calendars. So let’s tap into that knowledge and align our thoughts with a few simple strategies to help us manage to maintain a balanced life that can keep us as well as possible and as happy as possible.
Theres a need for caution and acceptance that our journey is not complete just because lockdown has lifted. The transition may be long and hard or you may slot straight in again. Neither is right or wrong and we’ll make some mistakes. We need to allow ourselves a little self compassion and flexibility. We need kindness over judgement, summed up by the Action For happiness quote;
Plus you may have been excited which is understandable, but dashed out and now finding it hard to adjust and lapsed back into lockdown living.
Bombarding family and friends with questions and digesting the news is not sufficient in changing your ability to adapt or comprehend the real life version for you. Be careful here not to totally freak! Some remains with alterations. Safety, fear continuing ability to digest rules and regulations will lead to some gains and some backward steps. Prepare yourself for things to feel unsafe and different, even very uncomfortable. So before we begin let’s;
Next up, it’s important to follow our next quote;
No two people are the same when it comes to health, well being, strengths, weaknesses and skill sets and talent. Even with the same medical condition no one is the same. That’s why medication is prescribed according to individual needs and with many people who have long term health conditions having more than one condition to consider, the impact and outcome will be tailored to your own needs and abilities.
We should expect bumps in the road. This has been experienced by all, but for shielders this is all happening very quickly after a long period of time with minimal social contact, minimal links and trips into the outside and fears around safety, vaccine, testing and managing such change. The pressure to immediately get out, the expectation that after all that time you will be desperate to get out. That is simply not the case and no one but YOU should be setting the timelines and pacing through what you can and cannot do.
Everyday Tasks
During the course of lockdowns we have had to adapt our daily schedules, loosing things we love and things we need but also gaining time to do other tasks we found hard to fit in before.
Got used to having Doctor Appointments from the safety and comfort of your home? Heading to hospitals again for face to face appointments is not only time consuming but more stressful, raises safety fears, brings change in the way things are set out and tests our bodies and minds.
Meeting family and friends again will be extremely emotional and heart warming but also energy sapping, movement away from stricter time scales and added pressure to actually head out to meet people or having the confidence to let them back into our lives.
Another scenario is queues at shops, smaller shops with ‘one way streets’ and larger ones with socially distanced markers on the floor and plastic visors around the tills themselves. Not to mention the lack of direction that you’ll face. Places with two entry points are likely to be operating a one door in and one door out scenario. Supermarkets can be difficult to manage and busy aisles hard to navigate safely whilst keeping distance.
Social Media
Here we need to say no more!
Coping Strategies
Those pacing and mental health strategies that were engraved in our brains have been left ‘unused’ and now? The big world is re-opening. Not only that it’s very different to the normal before lockdown. Brings us nicely to our next quote!
Hobbies
Perhaps you have taken up a new hobby or found a way to continue an old one from home. Perhaps it’s a yoga class you have been missing and rush out to attend. This involves booking yourself in, travel, allowing time to get there, a room full of others socially distanced, times that you have to stick to. You get home feeling great or you get home and think my entire morning is over! Then ‘freak out’ time! Before you could go through your Yoga online with a group or through an app on your phone or even through your own programme built from experience. Carried out at a time that suited your new daily structure and now you need to catch up! Now comes the question of what works best? Which do you prefer? Is there a way to balance it so you can alternate each week?
Our Top Tips To Feeling Safe and Being in Control & Making A Safe Transition
Download the COVID-19 App onto your phone and ensure that you know how to use the app to download codes when entering/accessing outdoor food outlets or shops, work places etc
Perhaps signing up for lateral flow testing kits from Gov.uk could make you feel more confident. Encourage your family, friends, carers, colleagues and exercise buddies to do so as well.
Vaccine - Ensure you have had your vaccines and encourage others around you to have theirs as well. This Vaccination Poster from gov.uk shows the priority levels. Encourage people around you to make sure they come forward and have their vaccine when it’s the right time.
Rapid Flow Tests are now available to order by anyone. Set yourself up on the GOV.UK site and you’ll receive enough to complete 2 tests a week for 3 weeks plus one extra. This then gives you time to order your next set. They arrive super quick! Encourage those around you to sign up and complete tests before you meet.
Go at your own pace and plan ahead. Check your diary and spread out large tasks. Break them down into small manageable chunks whilst you re-acclimatise.
Practice wearing your face mask at home. If you haven’t worn one before it’s a very different feeling. If you are exempt from wearing one, get in touch with your Doctors and get yourself a badge that clearly shows this so you are not judged. Visit Gov.uk to download a badge for your phone, a poster or card. You can also find details of how to make your own mask.
Even a simple task like going to the chemist brings about change. So where possible continue to have your prescriptions delivered to home/organise this to take away something you don’t have to worry about for now.
If you can and have food delivered then continue with this to allow you more time to get used to other activities.
Plan your trips carefully. Start slow and build up time and distance away from home. Check with local councils to get information about opening times for car parks, public toilets, open spaces and leisure facilities.
Pack some sanitiser in your bag. Most places have their own but you can never be sure.
Practice Good hygiene Sport England Hygiene Campaign For Sport & Physical Activity. This guide although produced for the Sporting world is still applicable to everyday life.
Practice any strategies that you may have used previously such as Mental Health mechanisms. Putting these in place could be really beneficial.
Asking for help is a difficult thing to do. But try to reach out whenever you need to and however you feel comfortable in doing so.
Don’t become complacent. Just because you managed one set trip successfully doesn’t mean it will work as planned the next. Leaving the house puts into place a high level of variants you cannot control.
Some great strategies that we can use to help us transition back to a new normal are;
Visualisation - Well Mind
Visualisation For Anxiety from Well Mind by Katherina Star and reviewed by Megan Monahan refers to visualisation as a process that;
‘Involves using mental imagery to achieve a more relaxed state of mind. Similar to daydreaming, visualisation is accomplished through the use of your imagination’.(https://www.verywellmind.com/visualization-for-relaxation-2584112)
There is a great introductory guided visualisation that you can complete called ’White Sandy Beach’. This then progresses to personalised visualisation. This allows you to picture places you will go and how things work, what you need to check, the route you may follow. Using all your senses take yourself to where you want to be and if done effectively could really help you manage new and challenging environments.
Positive Psychology - Emotion Wheel
There are a vast array of Emotion Wheels and colour wheels in circulation on Psychology Sites. Many based upon the work of Plutchik and his wheel. (Pico, 2016) They explore the eight primary emotions that he identified. These are;
Joy and Sadness
Acceptance and Disgust
Fear and Anger
Surprise and Anticipation
The wheel allows you to understand your feelings and break them down. You can complete these when you have been out and tried something new or utilise them to explain to others or even yourself what you are feeling. Once identified then you can begin to manage those feelings in a more direct fashion.
MindMapping.com - What is a MindMap?
There are many ways to create a mind map but this is another technique used widely across many setting. It can be helpful in managing your concerns, worries, tasks you need to complete and allow you to organise your thoughts. This version of mindmapping explores the Five Essential Characteristics as;
The main idea, subject or focus is crystallised in a central image
The main themes radiate from the central image as 'branches'
The branches comprise a key image or key word drawn or printed on its associated line
Topics of lesser importance are represented as 'twigs' of the relevant branch
The branches form a connected nodal structure. (https://www.mindmapping.com/mind-map)
Summary
Remember that your health is the most important part of this. Without good physical and mental health we are not able to help others. Don’t Compare yourself to others! Your journey out of lockdown is exactly that. Explain to your friends and family and colleagues how hard this is for you and explain what they can do to support you. Never feel alone, always have someone there to help you through. If you don’t have that special someone then contact a mental health charity or your GP for additional support.
We’ll let Action from Happiness sign off for us with this great reminder!
(*Image Rights to; Action For Happiness-FaceBook Page)
It also takes us right back to where we started at the top, with If All You did today is make it through the damn day then be proud!
(*Image Rights to; Action For Happiness-FaceBook Page)
A few links….
Sport England - Hygiene For Sport & Physical Activity
How to Get A COVID Test
Order Lateral Flow Tests
Make Your Own Mask/Face Mask Exemption Badges
Vaccine Priority List
Visualisation - Well Mind
Positive Psychology - Emotion Wheel
Action For Happiness
Coming Up Next Week…
Setting the tone for next week, we look at the fear factor of returning to exercise. As a starter we can look at Adrienne's Story via Activity Alliance. Fearful Of Returning To Normal explores the reasoning behind that fear and how we can then approach getting back in sync
Get Active at Home is an amazing resource from Activity Alliance which we will utilise in detail to explore opportunities open to people with LTHC’s that allow us to explore activities and opportunities safely and happily before the need to push yourself outside your comfort zone and back into formalised activity outside the home. We will also consider the opportunities for prolonged home exercise if that is that can be managed and sustained. Whilst taking a whistle stop tour of MIND’s Safe Return To Exercise for those with Mental Health Conditions.