Managing worries and anxieties through coronavirus Neill Boddington – Mental Health Advisor, Disability Support Team Neill.Boddington@open.ac.uk www.open.ac.uk/
Introductions Format for todays session 2
Session outcomes Understand what worries are, and 01 consider your own. Appreciate, based on psychological 02 models, why you could be feeling as you have. Learn and practice some simple ‘check 03 in’ exercises. Be aware of the stress response and 04 how that affects our body and mind. Learn some in the moment strategies 05 and consider longer term coping strategies. Plan some defined actions to help 06 manage your worries and stressors. Be aware of further guidance and 07 support available. 3
GROUNDING CHECK IN ACTIVITY
Where are you right now? Consider everything that is going on right now. Where would you rank (out of 10) your quality of life right now? 10 0 As bad as it could As good as it possibly be could possibly be Again, consider everything and think of what number you would need your quality of life to be so it is ‘good enough’. What has contributed to your quality of life being higher or lower than your ‘good enough’ level? 5
How are you doing right now? 10 0 As bad as it could As good as it possibly be could possibly be If your quality of life score is lower than your ‘good enough’ level: • Why? What is contributing to this score? What actions need to be taken? What easy wins are there? What bigger issues can you identify? What positives in your life could be enhanced to raise your score? If your quality of life score is the same or higher than your ‘good enough’ level. • Do you sometimes focus on the negatives and that drags down your mood? How can you remember the positives to not let one negative take over? Are any negatives growing and need to be kept in check? 6
What are you worrying about? Reflect and write down some of you worries (they don’t need to be coronavirus related) 7
CHANGE, STRESS AND ANXIETIES PLUS COPING MODELS
Time of uncertainty = change = stress • Sudden changes to our ‘normal’ lives - Little or no warning and preparation time. • New situations we have little to no experience of to help guide us • Direct challenges to ours and others health and wellbeing. • Increase in stressful situations – i.e. children fighting. • Decrease in calming behaviours – i.e. going to yoga, clubs, social time. “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get back up.” “It ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.” 9
How change affects people 10
What is stress? Pressure becomes stress when you perceive that you cannot cope with the demands placed upon you. ‘you perceive’ – How you view the situation, are you thinking rationally, previous bad experiences? ‘cannot cope’ – Self-efficacy and confidence. Learning from past experiences and learning new skills to cope. ‘the demands’ – What is being asked of you? What can you control, time management, support structures, etc. 11
What is stress? I feel Ill I cannot cope I am anxious STRESS I’m so angry I’m overwhelmed It’s all too much I don’t have any control Demands Deadlines Focus PRESSURE Blinkers on Workload LEVEL OF… Music Reading Hobbies Family RELAX Watching TV Exercising Sleep Socialising TIME – minutes / hours / days / weeks 12
Amygdala Hijack 13
A-B-C Coping Model ABC Model Aware – Am I stressed, pressured, relaxed? Buy time – Be still / Be calm / Be present Choose – What to say, do, feel STRESSED – PRESSURED - RELAXED 14
Anxiety Based - Irrational Thinking Stress levels with demands exceeding our ability to cope, can alter our perceptions , especially when our brain is being hijacked! Thinking style Description Example; • Catastrophising Seeing only the worst possible You cough = I have coronavirus = outcome in everything often I could die. • when other options or solutions Problems getting some food = are offered. we will not be able to get any food. • Searching the environment for Checking yourself and loved Threat what you fear. ones for symptoms. scanning • Frequently reading & watching corona related news stories. • I’m scared so there must be Deciding that your emotions are Emotional reality. danger present. reasoning • I feel guilty so I must have done something wrong. • Taking some facts and then The Government has not said Fortune telling / deciding on the outcome even when schools will go back, so Leaps in logic though there are missing steps that means it will not be until next and then often acting as if the year. perceived situation has already 15 happened.
THINK Coping Model True? – Is this worry factual? What evidence is there? Helpful? – Is it helping me or others right now? Another way to ‘Check in’ Inspiring? – Does it inspire me or creates negative emotions? Necessary? – Is this what I need right now? Is it necessary (or appropriate) to engage it right now? Kind? – Is it offering kindness to me or others? Do I need to be kind to myself right now? 16
TYPES OF WORRIES AND HOW TO MANAGE THEM
What are you worrying about? Is your worry realistic and likely to happen? Can you directly do something about it? NO YES Practical worries Hypothetical worries ‘What if’ in their nature. Often Specific, defined and often rational un-specific, not based in (much) evidence and often irrational. Can you do something about it right now? Establish positive actions to help manage your thoughts about NO YES these worries… When can you? Root cause Plan for when you Emotions focused coping solving can act. 18
Strategies to manage ‘in the moment’ anxiety & stress Breathe - Breathe in for a count of 7, out for 11. Imagine your worries in a bubble – They float away on the wind, while others can be popped. Tighten, then relax - Tighten all your muscles for a count of three, then let go. Repeat. Do a 5/5/5 mindfulness exercise - Pause and notice 5 things you can see. Acknowledge 5 things you can hear. Take note of 5 things in contact with your body. Movement - A quick walk, going up and down stairs, stretching – it doesn’t have to be strenuous. Any sort of movement will help you de-stress. Step out of the stressful situation - Literally walk away and give your attention to something else, even if only for a moment. It gives you a chance to calm down and regain control of thoughts and emotions. Break the cycle - When you find yourself caught up in a cycle of negative thoughts, deliberately turn your attention to something positive (e.g. a good memory, something nice you’re going to do). Talk to someone about it - Talking about thoughts and feelings can help to release tension. Putting things into words to another person gives you distance. It can also offer a different perspective. Imagine it’s your friend - Pretend is a friend or loved one bringing you this problem, what advice and support would you offer them? Be picky with your social media - Consider who is in your social media news feeds and whether their post encourage anxious feeling or help you to cope with your worries. Use THINK to help here. Rank your worry – On a scale of 1- 10, how bad really is it? Consider in relation to your ‘good enough’ score. Worries before bed? – Write it down on a paper to get it out of your head and reflect on it using THINK. If your worry can be ignored, thrown the paper away. If you need to action it, keep it to remind you tomorrow. 19
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