If you follow the news regularly or have access to any form of social media, it will have been hard to miss the updates on the coronavirus outbreak. With the escalation of the disease leading to its declaration as a global pandemic, it is difficult to stay on top of the latest advice without being inundated by the pessimism of the daily headlines. Though imperative to spread international coronavirus news, the media has a talent for inducing wild scale panic, which has emptied the shelves of facemasks, toilet rolls and even pasta. These are uncertain and unpredictable times, but that does not mean that we should live in a constant state of fear and anxiousness. We certainly should not succumb to the fearmongering of the internet.

It would be unfair to assume that the media’s tendency to report bad news results from any schadenfreude sense of joy from hardship. ‘Breaking news’ tends toward a more negative bias because of its urgent and severe nature. Take the examples of a natural disaster versus a scientific research breakthrough: it is more vital to announce the severity of the natural disaster in order to generate traction and maximise global aid response, whilst the scientific breakthrough will be just as good news the next day. Prioritising bad news reporting is therefore somewhat sensical, and relates to the moral intention of spreading urgent news where necessary. However, this is often exacerbated by the fact that media outlets will try to maximise web traffic with catchy or exaggerative headlines. Psychological studies have evidenced a higher human response to misfortune, a concept termed ‘the negativity bias’. Thus, headlines containing extreme or negative language work in favour of news publications. You are most likely already aware of these types of news stories, more commonly known as clickbait.

So, in a period filled with great uncertainty, being constantly inundated with negativity on your newsfeed can take its toll. Repeated exposure to the conspiracy theories, death tolls, and use of phrases such as ‘crisis’, ‘global emergency’, and ‘fear’ can have a serious effect on your mood and general outlook. Are you anxious about your own health, or that of your friends and family? Or perhaps your concerns stem from income and money worries if you are part of a workforce unable to work from home? Maybe you are simply overwhelmed by constant damage reports and the worrying state of the world as it is portrayed in the media? For those with pre-existing mental health issues, or a predisposition to stress and anxiety, the uncertainty of the current climate can be even harder to cope with. Two of the essential symptoms of coronavirus – sweats (a fever) and shortness of breath – are also indicators of a common panic attack. Is it then all that surprising that people who suffer from health anxiety, coined hypochondriacs, find themselves affected by the daily headlines stressing the risks of this pandemic?

Though anxiety, worry or stress are all valid in this unstable period, they are not something that anyone should have to go through alone. Remember that you are entitled to and responsible for prioritising your mental health, but if coronavirus concerns are beginning to interfere with your daily routine, it is important to voice this. Speak to your family, friends or employer about these concerns and consider alternatives that may put your mind at ease. And if you, like me, have been advised by your local health service to self-isolate, try not to think of this as a drastic or intimidating measure. For the majority of the population, catching the new coronavirus presents little threat: the need to practice social distancing comes from wanting to protect more vulnerable members of our society, to whom the disease poses a much higher risk. You are entitled to feeling frustrated if there has been disruption to your travel or life plans and you cannot continue to work or socialise as you normally would. Nevertheless, the lives of those in high-risk categories are no more expendable than yours or mine, and self-isolation is simply a measure to minimise spread.

Admittedly, it can be difficult to maintain a positive attitude when forced to spend seven days or more inside – and with rumours of an impending lockdown – but there are little ways that you can look after your mental health and reduce anxiety whilst doing so:

Organise a daily routine. Though isolation is a perfect time to catch up on both sleep and your favourite Netflix show, spending all day every day in bed is not a viable option for mental maintenance. Try to incorporate some exercise or outdoor activity if you can – contrary to popular opinion, you can leave the house if you are self-isolating, provided you are not coming into close contact with others. If you cannot work from home, use this as an opportunity to finish all those little tasks that have remained on your to-do list for months. Pick up a new book, or a new hobby, maybe become a TikTok sensation …
Stay in contact. Self-isolation does not have to mean seclusion, and we are lucky enough to be part of the generation with access to technology that allows us to keep in contact, even from a distance. Call your grandma, FaceTime your best friend, check up on those you love and care for.
Avoid overwhelming yourself with news outlets: turn off news notifications and find a reliable, unbiased news source. Alternatively, ask a friend or family member to relay the most important news updates to you. If anyone is deluging you with negativity, explain to them how you feel, or turn read receipts off. Perhaps now is as good a time as ever to take a break from social media – with all the quarantining going on, you are not exactly likely to miss anything.

Amidst all the doom and gloom, there is still some good, and seeking out positive news platforms is another way to improve your mood during this time. Whilst we were all so consumed by the pandemic, it was easy to miss the news that global carbon emissions fell by two per cent last year, or that Scotland demonetised period products. Not only this, but there is a heart-warming quality to the community response to Covid-19, which has triggered a positive social change. With many people offering aid to those within high-risk categories by helping with grocery shopping and other errands, their risk of catching the disease is significantly reduced. Over seventy per cent of coronavirus cases in China have now recovered, Detroit is restoring water to homes with unpaid water bills to enable greater hygiene, and Venetians in lockdown are reporting the first signs of recovery for Venice’s severely polluted water system. With the UK’s schools closed, the government are implementing a system to ensure children entitled to free school meals will not go hungry. And yet, we are attacked daily only by news of death and escalation.

Perhaps the media need to reassess the balance between good and bad news reported and how this affects the general public. For now, know that there is good news out there, buried beneath the fearmongering and fake news. In these trying times, we have a responsibility to our community: look out for yourselves and those around you and spread positivity where possible. And if you take just one thing from this article, let it be that there really is no need to start stockpiling spaghetti.

Covid-19: Combatting Anxiety in a ‘Crisis’

Illustrations by Zsófi Mayer

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