Mental wellbeing during COVID: what is it? How to maintain it?

No one expected that a single outbreak of a “pneumonia-like” disease in Wuhan, China that was reported on December 31, 2019, by the World Health Organization Country Office in China would rapidly result in a global pandemic affecting different nations worldwide. No one has foreseen the emergence of a novel coronavirus and the vast damage it has brought to the world.
Through the efforts of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it was found that the outbreak was caused by SARS-CoV-2, a novel coronavirus that is primarily transmitted through respiratory droplets and can cause severe respiratory damage leading to other complications. However, since the virus is newly discovered, all aspects of transmission, screening, treatment, diagnosis, and management have to start from scratch. And because of the severity of the effects of the disease; rapid increase of cases and deaths in different countries; and the lack of data for proper action and management, COVID-19 was then declared by WHO as a global pandemic in March 11, 2020.
As there is still no vaccine available at this time, data from WHO as of July 20, 2020, presents that there are already 14, 043, 176 confirmed cases globally; 597, 583 deaths globally; and 216 countries, areas or territories affected by COVID-19. From the time the outbreak was reported, local and national health authorities worked together to reduce the burden of morbidity and mortality by implementing actions to prevent transmission of the virus such as frequent hand washing, wearing of a mask, social distancing, and community quarantines. However, amidst the efforts of everyone to follow these preventive actions, there is no denying that the damage caused by COVID-19 is not just limited to physical health but has also negatively affected mental health, emotional health, and economy.
What is Mental health?

Everybody gladly welcomed the coming of the New Year 2020 and excitedly envisioned new beginnings, greater dreams, more opportunities, and better health. But everything was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic and life dramatically changed everything. It has changed your lifestyle, your daily routine, your social connections, financial status, and even your perspectives. Along with these drastic changes, are unforeseen effects that affected your emotional and mental health.
According to WHO, “Mental health is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively, and can make a contribution to his or her community.” Mental health does not just mean the absence of mental illness, rather emphasizes how you perceive and respond to the daily stress that you face each day. It involves the totality of your cognitive, emotional, and behavioral response and well-being despite the different life challenges.
How to maintain Mental health During COVID times

Reducing or eliminating things or events that trigger your stress and anxiety can be very helpful to maintain your mental health and help you cope up with the pandemic. Here are practical ways that you can do:
Maintain your daily routine

The sudden change in your schedule may have caused chaos in your daily routine. When you instantly transform from a busy-bee to a lazy cat just lying on your couch or bed the whole day, you will feel unproductive at the end of the day. If you used to work in a busy office following a certain time frame and now you are working from home and you get to choose when to work and when to play, you might feel less motivated along the way. If you currently shifted to working from home or have lost your job and you are now the boss of your time, it is wise to still maintain your daily routine. Wake up, sleep, and eat your meals on time. Train yourself to follow your daily routine so you can achieve your goals for the day. If you don't keep a schedule, you might just lazy around the whole day and nothing will get done. A planner can help you keep track of your schedule, so you should get one.
Limit social media exposure

Since the COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, the local and the national government declared closures of establishments and resorted to home quarantine procedures to minimize socialization and reduce the spread of the virus. Since we are social human beings, and we need to connect, social media is one of our tools to still build a connection to people and get updates with what is going on with the lives of people whom we don't see anymore. You can connect to people through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media apps, and they provide unlimited opportunities for you to know the trend, share your life, witness changes, and be updated with the current news regarding COVID-19. However, depending on how wise you take it, the more you expose yourself to social media, the more opportunity you create for anxiety, pressure, worry, insecurity, and fear because the information you see is not filtered at all, and they can either be truth or lies that can exaggerate the impression and effect of this global pandemic. A study conducted by UC Irvine's Roxy Silver found that an excess of news and visual images about a traumatic event can create symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and poor health. Try setting a certain time that you can follow for your social media exposure, and strictly follow it once in the morning and once before dinner for thirty minutes only. Don't do it before bedtime, as it might cause you uneasiness and anxiety leading to lack of sleep. If you don’t set a time, sometimes a five-minute screen time can lead to an hour or two without you realizing it.
Keep yourself busy

Keeping yourself busy amidst the pandemic is very crucial because it can either be “productive-busy” or “wasteful-busy.” If you are busy improving something like yourself, your home, or accomplishing your assigned work task, then that is productive-busy. However, if you are just lying in bed or on the couch keeping yourself busy with your screen, then that is a wasteful-busy especially if you are just scrolling without a purpose. Remember, you can make use of your screen time to be productive through learning free online courses and be busy about it. You can also be busy by doing things you can't do before such as gardening, cleaning storage rooms, redesigning the interior of your home, write a book or go back to that old hobby and reignite your passion. This way, your mind will be preoccupied with more important things than anxiety, stress, mental breakdown, fear, and worry.
Learn a new hobby or skill

It’s never too late to learn and set a new dream. You can start with the easiest and less demanding hobbies such as establishing a succulent garden, food preservation skills, cooking easy 5-minute meals, making thread bracelets, knitting, baking, making tea infusions, and many more. The possibilities are limitless for you. Research shows that hobbies can reduce stress, low mood, and depression. If you engage yourself in a new learning opportunity, you are training your brain to think more. Besides, you are spending your spare time on something that you enjoy which serves as your break or escape from your daily routine leading to the improvement of your mental health and wellbeing.
Pursue fitness

Keeping yourself healthy is the first step to keep your mind healthy. According to a study published in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing Journal, exercise can improve mental health through the reduction of anxiety, depression, and negative mood. It also improves self-esteem and cognitive functions as well as prevents low self-esteem and social withdrawal. The effects of exercising can be attributed to more oxygen supply due to exercise-induced increase in blood circulation to the brain. Even if you stay at home because of the pandemic, you can still pursue fitness by using uploaded fitness videos as your guide.
Relax and recharge

The unprecedented events from the COVID-19 pandemic caused rapid changes that affected our lives in small and big ways. There was a total change of lifestyle. To avoid unnecessary overthinking, panic, anxiety, and stress, it is important to recharge and relax for a while. The simplest and easiest way to do that is to sleep well. In a study conducted by Babson et al., it was found that acute sleep deprivation increased anxiety and stress levels in healthy adults. Find ways so you can sleep better such as using essential oils, scented candles, comfortable pillows, mellow music, and most importantly do not bring your phone in bed to limit screen time. Having enough sleep makes your mind and body ready for the challenges of the next day.
Work well from home by setting boundaries and territories

If you are used to working in your office cubicle, then suddenly shifted to a home-based job, mimic your office work station and create your work station at home. Select a certain space in your house that can be used as your work station. This is very important, as it will set your mood and motivate you to be alert and productive. Setting up your work station at home is like setting a boundary and territory for work and not for play, which will allow you to get the work done. Make your workstation as inviting as possible by designing a DIY cubicle, adding organizers on our table, adding green plants or succulent, and a coffee station nearby. Remember, if at the end of the day, you achieved your goals, your mind will be free from anxiety, worry, and overthinking due to unfinished tasks. If you bring your work in bed or on the couch, you will never be able to finish a task because your body would choose to dwell in the comfort that is freely given by your bed and couch. Other things that you can do include using noise cancelling headphones or earbuds, having a regular check-in with a colleague or supervisor, putting out work tools after work, and separating things for work from personal things.
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