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Maintaining sanity amidst a pandemic

If the temperature outside is perfect, human beings do not need to work in order to avoid either freezing or getting a heat stroke. However, if temperatures are much higher or much lower than our bodies require, we need to take measures to protect ourselves.听

As with warmth, so with social interaction. If the situation is such that with no extra work, we get all the co-mingling with other humans we need and no more,听we don鈥檛 have to make a particular effort. If, on the other hand, we get much less or much more than we need, we ought to make adjustments.听Thus, being thrust in an environment without privacy, e.., having to share a room with thirty other people at all times, would require finding ways to be alone. We are currently facing the opposite type of problem: most people get much less social interaction than they need in order to stay mentally and physically healthy.听听is inhospitable to our psyches in much the way extremely cold climates are听inhospitable to our bodies.

But the environment can be managed. We can maintain our sanity if we make听an effort. In what follows, I will make some suggestions. 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听

Understand why quarantine is necessary. Understanding is freedom.

This point is crucial, because, without understanding, the quarantine would feel听involuntary. An involuntary quarantine will take a higher toll on you than voluntary quarantine.

Be听less like a prisoner in solitary confinement and more like a long-term听听practitioner who has chosen to live in isolation. (Even with understanding, quarantine is not exactly analogous to the solitary life of the meditator, because the meditator chooses isolation for its own sake, not as a means to a very different end. For you, on the other hand, quarantine probably has no intrinsic but not only instrumental value. Nonetheless, the analogy is suggestive.)听

So why is the quarantine necessary? We currently have neither a vaccine nor a cure for听. If we do nothing, as many as 50% of the population can听get infected and as many as 1.7 million people in the US alone may die (though this sounds grim, it may nonetheless be an underestimate). In addition, 24 million people may eventually require hospitalization according to CDC models. But the US has less than a million hospital beds, and if all 24 million people who may eventually become听infected, get the virus at the same time, we鈥檒l be 23 million beds short. The bigger the hospital bed shortage, the higher the death rate.听

Understand what may happen to your body and brain. Understanding is control.听

Knowing why something is happening to you and knowing what to expect can give you a sense of mastery, which in turn, can help听counteract the negative impact of whatever you are going through. So what may happen? 听

The harms of the quarantine are cumulative. You likely felt perfectly fine the first day or few 鈥斕齛nd maybe, enjoyed staying home 鈥斕齜ut after a while, you may experience any of the following: listlessness,听, poor听, poor work performance, irritability,听, and听.听[1]听 Some people are at a higher risk of developing听these symptoms. Quarantine is likely to be harder on听, people who live alone, and people with underlying mental health problems.

These psychological effects can lead to poor physical health both directly 鈥斕齟.g., by increasing听听听in your body 鈥斕齛nd indirectly, by causing unhealthy behaviors such as eating junk food and being stationary. However, this does not have to happen. Just knowing why you feel the way you do will help, but you can do more.听Which brings me to:

The good news: You can neutralize the adverse impact of quarantine.听

You have to work on three key areas: physical health, connectedness, and a sense of agency. Here are a few tips:听听听

Keep a healthy lifestyle. This is always important, but it is crucial now. Exercise regularly and eat healthy听food. This听boosts mood, according to research, in addition to having听other health benefits.听

Find new ways to connect. We are lucky to have the internet and other means of communication. Take advantage of that. For听instance, if your work involves spending hours at a time in front of a computer screen, you can set up a call with a friend on Skype or Zoom, talk for a bit, and each of you can then begin working on his or her own project听without ending the call. You two can focus on your respective assignments, but you will see each other. You can also take breaks together.听听

Consider setting up group calls and organizing joint activities. You need opportunities to laugh (is it me or has comedy suddenly gone downhill?)听and bigger groups are merrier. You can engage in shared endeavors with friends remotely, for instance, you and your friends can each see a movie or hear a podcast episode, and you can meet on Zoom to talk about it.听

You can do other things as well, e.g., pick a recipe and make a dish while on a call with a friend cooking the same dish. You two can compare notes at every step.听

Or join a听Meetup group. (The group does not even have to be near you since听meetings will be online in the near future.)听If you are doing this for the first time, you may wish to recruit one or two people you know to do it with you so that you are not meeting unknown people only.

Maintain control.听One of the effects of isolation is a decreased sense of agency, of being a doer. This may lead to a lack of听听and lethargy, which can easily turn into feelings of meaninglessness and depression. (You may then finally know what those existentialists are talking about, but this is not a good enough reason to give in!) It is crucial that you maintain a sense of control over your situation and avoid being a passive recipient of unpleasant events. Be an agent, not a patient. You can achieve this by redoubling the effort you put into your normal work activities, aiming to excel at what you previously did only decently, or听by undertaking new projects such as taking听, writing poetry,听composing a song, or making art.听 听听听听

You can find new challenges too, for instance, you can enter an online puzzle contest. (You can work on a puzzle together with a friend and get two kinds of benefits.)听NPR听has a Sunday puzzle, and if you think you know the answer, you can听. There are other puzzle contests online. You can even organize one.听听

Find what helps you relax.听For instance, I myself love listening to the sound of the听rainforest.

I also like documentaries about the history of the universe or of the Earth.

I find that adopting a point of view from which all of our troubles seem small is therapeutic.听Other people get benefits from meditation practice (there are apps that can guide you through it) and outdoor activities such as gardening.听 听听听

Art can heal.听In a previous post, "Who Taught You All This, Doctor?" I听talked about the possible therapeutic effect of pandemic-related fiction. That kind of fiction may or may not benefit you specifically, but if you think about it, you are likely to find that you know, intuitively,听what sort of art you听do听need right now, much as you can tell what food you want by simply focusing on the question. (Just how we know these things is an interesting problem I will talk about in a future post.)听听

I, for instance, find that at the moment, I benefit from good art about听. There is a Japanese poet, Yoshiko Yoshino, who is currently 104 years old, and as you can imagine, has lived through a good deal, including听WWII. She has a haiku that goes like this:听听

as if mending
socks, I repair my mind
and live on[2]

References

[1] Brooks, S. et al.,听鈥淭he Psychological Impact of Quarantine and How to Reduce It" (2020).听The听Lancet,听Volume 395, Issue 10227, pp.912-920. Available at:听.

[2] Ueda, M. (2003).听Far Beyond the Field: Haiku by Japanese Women.听New York, NY: Columbia University Press

Originally published in Psychology Today, view the article .