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URMC / Psychiatry / Culture / Advisory Council of Consumers (DPACC) / Words of Advice for Maintaining Mental Health During COVID-19 Crisis

 

Words of Advice to Help During COVID-19 Crisis

We've compiled some words of advice from our patient and family advisors from DPACC to help you maintain your mental health during this COVID-19 health crisis.

Social media is a great tool now but it’s a double edged sword. So for me it's best to limit it. ~Sarah

Being a musician has helped me. In times of isolation I think it is good to be productive artistically. It can both keep you occupied and give you a sense of accomplishment. ~Jake

This can be a very trying time. One might feel alone or lonely. So here are some ideas:

  • Catch up on TV shows and/or watch a movie
  • Consider spring cleaning.One room/day or 2 days.
  • Go thru your clothes closet, organize and bag clothes for charity.
  • Go thru your kitchen junk drawer, organize and toss items that may be broken or duplicated.
  • Do you have a plastic cupboard or closet? Toss out the old worn items, those containers without tops etc. Etc.
  • Prepare, cook and freeze meals.
  • Allow yourself a comfort food or meal occasionally.
  • Support local restaurants.Many have take-out, house delivery and curbside delivery.
  • If you can, support a local food cupboard.Besides food they accept monies.
  • Send a check to one of your favorite charities.
  • Lastly check in with family.Phone a friend, and/or send an email.

Stay well! ~Marilyn

Some thoughts: get up in the morning as you did before the outbreak, get dressed, make your bed, eat breakfast, walk a mile every day, check in with friends and family, watch enough television to keep up to date, then turn it off. Trust the medical community to do their best, keep politics out of the mix, cook and eat healthy meals, remember, "This too shall pass." Be careful, but not fearful. ~DPACC Member

Remember to laugh it helps our mood. We have all gotten through very hard challenges. We will get through this as well. You are not alone! Make sure to practice self-care. ~Lynn

  • Do what you love and love what you do!
  • In this world it is not what we take up, but what we give up that makes us rich.
  • My goal is to build a life that I don't need a vacation from... I'm already there.
  • I am an EMT. I can't promise to fix all you problems, but I can promise you won't have to face them alone! I became an EMT because your life is worth my time.
  • "YOU" make the world a better place just by being in it.
  • The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything!
  • Faith makes all things possible. Love makes all things easy. Hope makes all things work! ~Lisa

For someone with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and OCD, this feels like a living nightmare. My fears of germs, illness, and contamination are being realized. The scenarios I've catastrophized have become a global reality, and experts are advising us all to do the very things I've worked hard to stop doing -- like excessive hand washing and Googling symptoms. Right now, it's compelling to sink back into old OCD habits, because they feel safe and more justified than ever. However, CBT and mindfulness have empowered me to gently remind myself that I can only control what I can control. I'm striving to be vigilant, not obsessive. I'm talking to loved ones when I feel the anxiety bubbling up. I'm limiting my news consumption and time on social media, because I know they are triggers. I'm exercising at least once a day outside in fresh air. I'm acknowledging fluttery waves of panic the moment they arrive, and promptly sending them back out to sea. And though I'm agnostic, I'm finding comfort in the serenity prayer: "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference." ~Whitney