Continuing with life and work despite Omicron
We've been living with the pandemic for almost two years now. It's clear that we've continued to live and work during this time, but it's also clear that nothing has been "normal."
Almost everyone has been confined to their homes, under a Temporary Workforce Adjustment Plan (ERTE), lost their job, or been working remotely. Furthermore, what has undoubtedly changed, and significantly so, is how we relate to others, both those closest to us (family, friends, colleagues, or neighbors) and those we only encounter occasionally. In other words, what we know as social support has been altered.
How to manage stress during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Social support is, par excellence, the variable that moderates stress . That is to say, given a complex or particularly demanding situation, the degree of social support a person has can ultimately lead to harm to their health, specifically their mental health. We are in a context of a potentially traumatic situation.
The symptoms we usually encounter are similar to a situation of generalized anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress, but with accumulation and recurrence of complex situations and in an environment where the people close to us who on other occasions were a pillar to recover us, are the same or worse than us.
The Omicron variant has brought us a new dose of uncertainty about the end of the pandemic, and fears, discomfort, and tiredness—in some cases exhaustion—are reappearing, jeopardizing our emotional well-being.
Recommendations for managing the emotional distress caused by the pandemic:
- Learn about and accept your personal situation . Your situation will likely be different from others, or you may have gone through different phases.
It's important to note that one of the positive aspects of the pandemic is that it has normalized the discussion of a potential negative impact on people's mental health. It can happen to anyone, making it a shared experience. - Explore and apply coping strategies you've used successfully in other challenging situations. Everyone has their own strategies; some examples include taking walks, establishing a healthy sleep routine, maintaining a balanced diet, or simply engaging in activities you enjoy.
- Also identify which coping strategies haven't helped you . As before, everyone will have behaviors they already know haven't helped them, for example, turning to alcohol, apathy, overexposure to daily news, etc.
If, despite everything, you feel you need emotional support, there are several more professional resources available. You can contact your company's occupational health and safety services , which can offer specific help and support to help you navigate different personal and professional situations.
In addition to the public mental health network, online resources have been launched over the past few months, both to identify or assess whether we may be facing a mental health problem, and to seek direct help from specialized professionals.
Some of these online emotional support tools in Catalonia are:
Galatea Foundation
The Galatea Foundation offers a psychological support service, which existed before the pandemic and was expanded to meet the increased demand resulting from the health crisis. This service is aimed at professionals in the healthcare and social services sectors.
Among other things, they offer recommendations for returning to normal, a resource box, and a psychological tele-support service. These are designed to help us better manage stress and reduce anxiety and distress. Ultimately, they provide strategies that allow us to complete our work in a healthier way.
Emotional management.cat
This tool, aimed at the entire population, has an emotional assessment option, a collection of resources and exercises to enhance emotional well-being, and access to various types of professional resources.
Emotional cab
This website, promoted by the Mental Health Board of Barcelona and the districts of Barcelona, brings together online activities and resources to improve the emotional well-being and mental health of citizens.
In short, in this pandemic context, experiencing some type of mental health disorder is highly likely. We have strategies that we have used before that we can and should use, and we have access to professional resources that can help us identify how we are feeling and provide the support we may need.
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