530: Mental Health Coping Strategies For Young Adults During The Pandemic
This week on the Anxiety Slayer Podcast we’re sharing what we’ve learned from our daughters about how young people can care for themselves during this pandemic.
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Points covered in this week’s episode:
The pandemic has been a shadow in all of our lives for almost a year. And while we’ve talked about coping strategies during this stressful time, we haven’t yet addressed how our young adults are doing in a world where they are locked down and navigating a very different world in school and at work to stay healthy. Today we’ll be sharing what we’ve learned from our daughters about their experience along with their suggestions about how young people can care for themselves.
Shann’s questions for her daughter:
What’s it like to be away from home for the first time during a pandemic?
It’s not anything like what I expected. Sure when you leave home you’re nervous, and understandably lonely sometimes, but COVID amplified those emotions tenfold. I have online classes and am stuck in a very small space for most of the time, as an introvert it wasn’t all bad at first, but lately, the isolation has gotten horribly dull. I’m lucky I can go home sometimes.
What challenges are you faced with having all online classes at art school?
First off, it’s not what I went to school for. It is nice to not have to go anywhere sometimes but I feel like my learning is greatly impacted or stunted because I’m not meeting other students or getting to know my professors in person. I have to rely on my professors to have good communication, lectures, and information that is usually more potent in a class setting. I suddenly have to be a lot more on top of things, and it’s hard to manage myself when it comes to days where I just don’t want to be there.
How are you caring for your mental health?
It varies and has not been easy. When I’m feeling depressed or getting stressed out, I try to cut myself some slack. I’m lucky to have teachers that care and understand mental health, if this weren’t the case, I think it would be a lot harder to take care of myself.
It’s a pandemic, the country isn’t functioning, I think cutting myself slack and not getting upset for not working as much is very healthy. It’s okay to give yourself days where you just take care of your basic needs even if that means you just clean up, get some food, rest, and do what makes you happy.
What suggestions do you have for all of the young people who are struggling right now?
Invest in your friendships. I suggest setting up a time to call friends, watch a movie (I suggest Teleparty,) or even play video games to connect.
If you are feeling low, don’t expect too much of yourself. If you’re trying to get a lot of work done, schedule time for it but don’t over exert yourself if you are struggling. Listen to your body.
If I have a lot of homework I just do my best to break it up over the week. Figure out which project is the most time sensitive and start with that. Did your professor give you a little more time to finish up, if so, you can reprioritze the rest of your assignments. Remember to celebrate what you can accomplish no matter how small.
Be kind to yourself and others. Most important, don’t get angry at yourself if you’re struggling, I promise you’re not the only one, and I’m sure your teachers, boss, parents, whoever you’re around is feeling stressed too. Be gentle with yourself.
This pandemic will pass and you will get back to living out in the world soon.
Ananga’s questions for her daughter:
What challenges are you faced with working from home during this pandemic?
I have experienced intense anxiety in recent months. In the UK we are in our third and longest lockdown, not being able to visit the places where I find solace and inspiration is challenging for me. Also not being able to see friends and family. I’ve struggled with the lack of variety, being in the same place and seeing the same things every day feels tiring to my mind.
The isolation has continued for so long, that I’ve had to look deeply and confront my anxiety and underlying emotions. I’ve looked at the effects of past damage that there previously hadn’t been time to respond to.
How are you caring for your mental health?
By focusing on what is within the realms of my control and hasn’t been touched by the effects of the pandemic.
I feel I’ve had to honor neglected emotions and it’s been very heavy, but I am relieved to say I’m feeling the benefits of leaning in to my anxiety.
To support myself I take Bach Flower Remedies - I make my own personal blend and change it every few weeks according to how I feel. I have taken advice on supplements that support me.
I enjoy reading spiritually inspiring books and listening to lectures, anything that helps me cultivate a bigger picture outlook that spans beyond the pandemic. I also meditate every day.
I work as an artist, so I continue painting and gathering inspiration where I can. I’m treating this time like a long winter which, for me, is a time of withdrawing and revisiting old sketch books and ideas.
I’m taking the opportunity to explore and teach myself new techniques that require long spans of concentration. Things that might otherwise be interrupted by the usual pace of life.
What suggestions do you have for young people who are struggling right now?
Give yourself the gift of growing a bigger picture mentality. This pandemic is a blink in the span of history, though it feels very intense day to day, it can be helpful to look outward while still honoring personal emotions and struggles. It helps take you outside your own head.
Watch where you go when you’re suffering and ask yourself, If I keep going here for relief, what effect will it have on me in the weeks to come? In times of suffering it’s easy to develop habits that in the long term are harmful, we do them because we want quick relief, but they usually leave us with more to deal with down the line.
Cultivate sweet exchanges with others. In the first lockdown I kept a list of people I wrote letters to, we sent each other little natural gifts, pressed flowers, mini paintings. I would walk and look out for leaves and flowers to press and send friends. Sending letters has a personal beauty to it and I love getting post. In the act of giving a little something to someone else, it helps to go beyond our own suffering. It’s beneficial both ways to lift someone else’s spirit.
What a blessing to get feedback from our daughters about their experience during the pandemic. If it feels good to you, perhaps you can answer these questions for yourself and put some of our daughter’s suggestions in your anxiety slayer care kit.
We also have a poem to share that we both find inspiring during these challenging days
My grandmother once gave me a tip:
In difficult times, you move forward in small steps.
Do what you have to do, but little by little.
Don't think about the future, or what may happen tomorrow.
Wash the dishes.
Remove the dust.
Write a letter.
Make a soup.
You see?
You are advancing step by step.
Take a step and stop.
Rest a little.
Praise yourself.
Take another step.
Then another.
You won't notice, but your steps will grow more and more.
And the time will come when you can think about the future without crying.
- Elena Mikhalkova
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