The COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll.
Markets are down. Businesses are closed. Many schools are online for the rest of the year. Social distancing becomes lonely.
You may feel like you’re alone, but that’s the furthest thing from the truth.
Every person, of every age, is going through the trying time. Making it so important to rally together.
Dr. Craig Uthe is a family physician at Sanford Health. During a Facebook Live Q&A with Sanford Health News, he laid out three bits of advice for managing through the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Take care of yourself
Dr. Uthe said that taking are of yourself first is the most important thing you can do.
“In airplanes, when the oxygen masks drop down, parents are instructed to put theirs on first before helping a child,” he said. “If you don’t put that mask on first, you won’t be able to help that child.
“The same can be said for this. You have to take care of yourself, before you can take care of loved ones.”
Stay connected
Dr. Uthe said this can be a very isolating time. In isolation, negative thoughts tend to creep in, which is why it’s important more now than ever to lean on support systems.
“We are all in this together. Everyone is experiencing this. Don’t do this alone,” he said.
Be grateful
Finally, although it’s especially difficult during these times, Dr. Uthe said finding things to be grateful for can help your mental make-up dramatically.
“We do have a lot of things to be grateful for,” he said. “I woke up this morning and it was a new day. Capital ‘N.’ I am the person that decides if it’s going to be positive or negative nobody else can do that except me. I own my own attitude.”
He said we need to be intentional, but we can do it.
“We all have an impact, we all make an impact on somebody’s life. I want my impact to be brightening the day, not darkening the day.”
Learn more
- Focus on your behaviors to relieve coronavirus anxiety
- Keeping a positive mindset amid COVID-19 pandemic
- Explaining COVID-19 to kids
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Posted In Behavioral Health, COVID-19, Expert Q&A, Wellness
