Coronavirus: Mental wellbeing support

How to
revive your
immune
system, your
wellbeing
(and your
sanity) as we
tackle the
spread of
Coronavirus
by Sandie Dennis

A Message
from Sandie
www.confidencetoreturn.co.uk

Never have we experienced what we have globally over the
last few weeks.
It’s no surprise that Coronavirus (COVID-19) is adding to
our stress and anxiety levels. Ironically, this will wreak
havoc on our immune systems, leading to a higher chance
of contracting the dreaded virus, and a higher likelihood of
passing it on to our loved ones.
Then, we have the dread of the daily
government announcements, which
started from 7 days self-isolation, to
14 days. We’ve all been told to avoid
restaurants, theatres, bars, and gyms, as
we set up our workstations at home.
With children not being allowed in childcare, their schools
and even universities, and then the over 70’s potentially
being put on a 12-week lockdown, during which the rest of us
will take our chances with herd immunity…
…PHEW!
Added to this is the absence of our daily
essentials in the shops; starting with the
humble toilet roll, closely followed by
household staples including pasta, rice,
and eggs.
No wonder we’re all taking a hit.
This situation has even tested me, with my many years of
experience in self-care: regularly boosting my immunity, and
successfully keeping depression and anxiety at bay following
a massive melt-down almost 20 years ago (it’s a long story).

Coping
strategies
that work
As an external consultant for your firm, I wanted
to share with you the tools and techniques I use
in and around my ‘new-normal’ day.
You can use them when your pack of toilet
rolls suddenly go missing from your shopping
trolley, as you whizz through the abyss of the
frozen food aisle. You can use them when your
child asks you to look in their nappy at their
latest ‘big’ creation, just as you’re starting a
conference call to Madrid.
Most importantly, you can use them as you
lie in bed at night, wrestling with thoughts of
impending disaster.
I will guide you through the main areas and
top tips here, though if you’d like some extra
support, speak to HR and I’ll be very happy to
have a ‘virtual remote’ chat to confidentially
discuss what’s going on.
Together, we can create a personalised stresshandling
strategy for you.
Before I begin, it may be useful for you to know
that I’m in the midst of an Applied Neuroscience
course which underpins the following tools
and techniques, and adds to my general skill
set. This includes lots of up to date ‘brain info’ –
which is seriously fascinating stuff, and my new
favourite subject!

“Why do I feel anxious driving into a supermarket, or while I’m trying to get an
online shopping time slot booked?”
This is all down to the ancient part of your brain,
deep near the base. Named the amygdala, this
is the ’key master’ that’s home to your anxiety.
Now, the amygdala is totally reactive; its main
function is SURVIVAL. Even if that just means
running into a supermarket as soon as they
open at 7am, to grab as many toilet rolls as
you can (that wasn’t me, honestly. I was told
that in my local shop).
If it’s the first two, adrenaline and cortisol will take charge,
preparing you for the onslaught that floods your body.
So, how do you instantly try and block that ancient reaction,
saving yourself from the drop of adrenaline and cortisol
when it finally leaves your body hours later, leaving you
exhausted and maybe unable to sleep, too?
This reaction instantly fires up the
hypothalamus, which controls your body’s
stress response. This goes something along the
lines of, “do I need to run into the supermarket
to get the toilet rolls, fight for them, or walk
away and come back later?”
www.confidencetoreturn.co.uk

The answer is:
self-awareness!
If you know your triggers, you can prepare. As soon as you
become aware of your emotional state, you can ‘flick the
switch’ of activating the fabulous pre-frontal cortex (my
favourite area of the brain) which gives you higher, more
rational thoughts that can suppress the amygdala.
So, how does this work?
You have to notice (which you will do, the
more you work on it) that you’re starting to
have negative thoughts; that on approaching
the shop, you are starting a mental spiral
downwards – something the amygdala thrives
upon!
The quickest and best way to control the hypothalamus
is… (wait for it, it’s a shocker) is to BREATHE.
When we’re not aware of our emotional state, we spiral
really quickly. Yet when we switch on this small, free miracle
called breathing; through the nose and from the belly
(rather than your chest), we can just calmly carry on with
what we’re doing.
I become aware by talking to myself, out loud
if I’m in the car, or in my mind if I’m not. Here’s
what I say: “stay calm, there’s enough for us
all, we’re not living in a third world country”.
The good news? No sitting down and meditating is required
(which is convenient in a packed supermarket).
These reassurances will instantly suppress
the amygdala, because you’ve activated your
pre-frontal cortex, and stopped that ‘fight or
flight’ reaction.

Another way to calm that amygdala is to be totally aware
of what you are paying attention to, and be more in the
‘now’.
I think of it as worrying about the future, when in reality,
we only know the present moment.
I know that worrying knocks my immune system, which
will not serve me as it causes inflammation. Worrying
also induces anxiety, releasing more cortisol adrenaline.
So, start activating those chemicals, not the illegal ones,
but those ones we all have, that are uniquely created
within us.
These are called neurotransmitters, and they interrupt
our brain chemistry, breaking the loop of cortisol by
making you feel better.
But you have to activate them.
Do this by increasing your serotonin – the happy chemical
– by making regular lists and goals. As you make decisions
and achieve those goals, tick them off your list. This will
ignite dopamine, the feel-good neurotransmitter.
An even better way to increase dopamine is to practise
gratitude. You cannot feel regretful or resentful when
you think of something or someone that you’re truly
grateful for – try it!

You can also try
activating my favourite
neurotransmitter – oxytocin
the ‘love’ feeling which boosts your immune system and
breaks that negative loop. Do this by simply being kind to
yourself and others.
Imagine how good you would feel by knocking on a neighbour’s
door, and leaving them a toilet roll (notice I said roll, not the
whole pack… we can’t be that kind). Usually, oxytocin is
released by hugging and touching people, which may not
be advisable too much right now. But we can all be kinder to
ourselves, even if only by taking an occasional break, and going
for a walk in the fresh air.

Finally, remember
that good quality
sleep underpins
EVERYTHING in the
body,
and is the foundation of every organ, and
every system.
If you are going to bed ruminating over and
over about worries in the future, then it’s
simple: you won’t sleep, or you will wake
up in the night and not be able to go back
off, or wake up feeling just as exhausted.
Studies have shown that cortisol has a surge
at around 3am, and if you’ve multiplied that
ten-fold throughout the day, it’s a negative
Tsunami for your body. It’s the biggest area I
talk to employees about during my one-toones,
so much so that I’ve created an eBook
on the whole subject. I’ve included it here
for you to read
www.confidencetoreturn.co.uk

So, to recap
become more aware to stop the negative spiral, BREATHE, and activate those neurotransmitters to
get a good night’s sleep…
… so that you have the energy, mindset and control on waking, to cope and handle any challenges
that come your way over the coming weeks and months.
And one day, we shall go back to only associating the word Corona with a nice cold beer on a sunny
day, with a wedge of lime stuck in the top.
Until those days return, take care and keep well,
Sandie
www.confidencetoreturn.co.uk
@confidence2rtn
Sandieconfidencetoreturn