You may or may not have noticed I haven’t written a blog for a very long time. There’s been a small virus called Coronavirus in the way which has made things rather complicated. I put off having a break for a chance of being able to get away interstate. An interstate getaway became having a local Victorian holiday and then that became having some time off in our home. Home is where we spend weekends and even some public holidays but certainly not holidays! With that as a backdrop, I have been reading a book ‘Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers’ by Robert M. Sapolsky – a book about stress, stress-related diseases, and coping – and it has been a very timely read.
Scientists know that we produce a stress hormone – a glucocorticoid – that assists our body to manage an immediate stress response within the fight, fright, or freeze scenario. Ideally, this secretion of stress hormone works best when it is not within a prolonged or severe situation. If the stress response becomes too lengthy, it can lead to depression or demotivation. To maintain stress equilibrium, we ideally need a certainty, control, and predictability that none of have during this isolation period. I have been reading about equilibrium with stress responses whilst talking to clients daily who are experiencing situations without certainty, control, or predictability due to COVID-19. It makes some sense of people’s absolute grief and stress responses that they are exhibiting.
Apparently, to be able to reduce stress, you need to be able to maintain some degree of control and predictability. Other ways of reducing personal stress can be via maintaining social connection to supports. We know that those who maintain connections to people or groups will often live longer than those who are socially isolated. Those who are more successful at managing degrees of stress are additionally able to hold hope and reality concurrently and have capacity to switch strategies as needed for cognitive flexibility. It is also important to be able to regularly be involved in an outlet of frustration – something you enjoy and allows you to blow off some steam, but another activity you potentially can’t be involved in with COVID in isolation.
So, in order to be doing isolation to the best of your ability, think about:
What can I control in my life and how can I do that?
What do I need to let go off because I can’t control it?
Who do I need to maintain connection with and how can I do that?
What frustration outlet can I do regularly? Is there something I can do in isolation?
What routine can I set for predictability? What do I need to maintain doing and scheduling?
