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<\/p>\nIn January 2020, WHO declared International Concern at the outbreak of the Coronavirus.\u00a0 In March 2020, it declared it a pandemic, since it had spread worldwide.<\/p>\n
WHO and public health officials,\u00a0including India, are on a war footing, trying to contain the spread,\u00a0and find an effective treatment n vaccine. In the meanwhile however,\u00a0people are much stressed and anxious with the new way of living.\u00a0 The WHO’s Department of MENTAL HEALTH & SUBSTANCE USE has come up with some considerations for people of different groups.<\/p>\n
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Since Covid 19 can affect people\u00a0of any nationality,\u00a0religion,\u00a0or ethnic background,\u00a0all the affected people\u00a0need our support, compassion and kindness.\u00a0 We should not stigmatize such people. To avoid being anxious or scared, people are encouraged to talk to those they trust, amongst family and friends. From having to restrict their outdoor activities,\u00a0including attending the Eucharistic celebrations, to restricting visits to family and friends, and staying at home, this has only increased their anxiety.<\/p>\n
Since you must stay at home now, maintain a healthy lifestyle.\u00a0 Choose healthy foods and eat well. Include physical exercise in your daily routine and sleep well.\u00a0 Be supportive to family and friends by email and phone. Avoid use of alcohol, smoking or other drugs to deal with your emotions.\u00a0 Draw up a plan in case of physical or mental health needs, on where to go for help, and how to seek help.<\/p>\n
Limit worry and anxiety by lessening the time you and your family spend watching or listening to media coverage on the situation,\u00a0especially if it’s upsetting you.\u00a0 Rather, get the facts and information from reliable and credible sources,\u00a0such as the WHO website,\u00a0and local and state public health platforms.<\/p>\n
Hone your forgotten skills,\u00a0and try out new ones.<\/p>\n
Tell of people who have recovered and of those who helped others recover. Amplify such stories,\u00a0 it restores confidence.\u00a0 Honor all caretakers and health care workers.\u00a0 Acknowledge the part they play in saving us and keeping us and our loved ones safe.<\/p>\n
Ensure essential medications are in sufficient supply,\u00a0especially for those with long term mental health problems,\u00a0epilepsy,\u00a0and other chronic diseases.<\/p>\n
Lastly, now’s the time to increase your prayer time and grow spiritually. Jesus is the rock on which we have built our mansion,\u00a0let the floods come, we are prepared for it.<\/p>\n
If you are still anxious, talk to a health worker or a counselor.<\/p>\n
Where children are concerned, help them express their emotions of fear or sadness in a safe and supportive environment. Encourage them to take part in any creative activity, sports or hobby. They may be more demanding on their parents and elders, thereby seeking more attention. Discuss the Covid situation with your child, and depending on his age, help him address his fears and\u00a0concerns if any.<\/p>\n
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Older adults, especially those in isolation\/quarantine,\u00a0may become anxious,\u00a0angry,\u00a0depressed\u00a0or withdrawn.\u00a0 Explain the facts as simply as possible,\u00a0about what is going on, and how measures are being taken to reduce risk of infection.\u00a0 Repeat this information whenever necessary.\u00a0 Help them practice preventive measures like hand washing,\u00a0wearing masks etc. the right way. Provide them with practical knowledge in advance,\u00a0on how to call for a cab, and for food and medicines to be delivered.\u00a0 Teach them to maintain regular schedules in physical exercise,\u00a0to eat well,\u00a0sleep well, cleaning, and reading, painting, singing or any hobby.<\/p>\n
Healthcare workers will certainly feel the stress of working tirelessly during these times.\u00a0 The community understands your priceless contribution to society. Nothing we say or do, can ever alleviate your feelings of stress, isolation and emotional distress that you must be going through.\u00a0 And we salute you for your sacrifice, for the well-being of the community, often risking your own lives.<\/p>\n
These are challenging times, no doubt,\u00a0but we are all in it together.\u00a0 So let’s face this situation together as a responsible community, each one doing his part, doing his best, to contain the spread of the virus.<\/p>\n
Dr. Prisca Dias<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In January 2020, WHO declared International Concern at the outbreak of the Coronavirus.\u00a0 In March 2020, it declared it a pandemic, since it had spread worldwide. WHO and public health officials,\u00a0including India, are on a war footing, trying to contain<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pormoll"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1579"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1579\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1582,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1579\/revisions\/1582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stsebastianaquem.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}