Dr. Paul on why recovering from pandemic stress will take time

It’s been a long haul. As more Americans are vaccinated and COVID-19 infections decline, hope is on the horizon. The Center for Disease Control has given us a green light for a more normal life for vaccinated adults and teens. A couple of weeks ago, I saw restaurants filled with diners celebrating with friends and family. It was a welcome sight.

But as a psychologist, I see many adults and children still struggling with anxiety, insomnia and other stress-related problems. For some, it’s been difficult to shed their masks outside or feel a sense of safety around others, despite being vaccinated. On neighborhood walks, I still see adults cross the street to avoid walking on the sidewalk with others.

Our nervous systems are uniquely evolved to respond to environmental threat with a fight, flight or freeze response. Our autonomic nervous system provides us with a rapid response to danger. But it’s also designed to provide us with swift relief when the threat is over. Our heart rate decreases, our breathing slows, our blood pressure returns to normal, and our muscles relax when we avoid or slay the dragon.

But the pandemic’s threat has been more like living in a war zone, where danger and uncertainty is always lurking around the corner.

Dr. Hans Selye described the impact of sustained stress in his 1956 book “The Stress of Life,” which explains the general adaptation syndrome. Humans adapt to changing environments, but without relief, they experience exhaustion. Since the 1950s, scientists have made great advances in the understanding of how sustained stress impacts our brains, our chemistry and our organs. It’s not a pretty picture.

Dr. Martin Seligman, a well-known psychologist, observed in his research on learned helplessness that when mammals are exposed to sustained stress, recovery doesn’t occur immediately after the stressor is removed. It can take time and intentional effort to help mammals recover. For some, it can be a long road to recovery.

So how can we help our minds, our bodies and our spirits to recover from pandemic stress?

Be patient. Some people may experience immediate relief as the pandemic eases, but for many others it will be a slower process. For those individuals, they may wonder, “Why don’t I feel better? Why do I still feel anxious? What’s wrong with me? What if everything goes upside down again?” Accept your experience without judgement but recognize that healing may take time.

Make incremental change. Some will want to burn their masks and dance around the fire. But many others will have difficulty letting go of the many safety rituals we’ve adopted over the last year and half. That’s fine. Make small incremental changes and give yourself time and space to adapt to new guidelines.

Allow your body to heal. For many, the last 18 months of the pandemic has resulted in increased use of alcohol and marijuana. There has been a run on less healthy comfort foods, which has caused unwanted weight gain. It’s a good time to reduce alcohol and marijuana use, if that has increased. If you’ve added some unwanted weight (like me), it’s a good time to dial back your pandemic eating habits. I’ve taken a break from my sourdough-bread baking to help take off some of the weight I gained over the last year.

Take care of health maintenance. Many adults haven’t gone to the dentist, had their annual physical exams or have avoided age-connected health screening. This is a good time to take an inventory of those activities and make appointments to get them done.

Rest and relax. For many folks, there is pent up demand to travel, eat out, go back to gyms, back to their office, or visit as many family and friends as possible. I get it. But make sure to give yourself opportunity to do nothing, to sit out in the sun (when it’s out) and take it easy. Our bodies need to repair.

Paul Schoenfeld is a clinical psychologist at The Everett Clinic. His Family Talk blog can be found at www.everettclinic.com/health-wellness-library.html.