Dr. Rimmy Singla said that while staying at home and sequestering oneself from others is essential to protect one’s physical health, it can lead to increased anxiety, distress, and/or depression. Here are some useful coping strategies during these trying times from the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and the Mental Health Professional Group:
Keep in touch with friends and family through FaceTime, Zoom, emails or other platforms.
Take advantage of the many free classes being offered online, from exercise groups to academic courses. Friends are using online group meetings to have virtual happy hours or dinners together.
Using social media to stay in touch can be enormously helpful, but make sure you use credible and reliable news sources to get information. Limit your intake of the news, as large doses. as well as misinformation, which can trigger negative emotional reactions.
Stay Home, Stay Safe!