Healthy Approach to COVID-19

Have you ignored your mental health during this pandemic? Safety and health, along with new demands for your children’s education may have taken priority. Is it healthy to focus on certain priorities and let others slide?
You may have minimized or maximized COVID-19 fears. Minimizing them can potentially have significant negative impact on us and others. Our life can become complicated if we think only of ourselves without considering the impact of our choices on others. Blowing our fears out of proportion can also be damaging, by limiting our opportunities and our physical health. Emotional health has a significant impact on our physical health and lifespan.
Even if you don’t drive, you probably have been driven in a car. You are more likely to be injured or killed in an auto accident than by COVID-19. To reduce the likelihood of negative consequences, proper care is taken while driving, paying attention to our actions and the actions of others. By being attentive and observant, we avoid potential risks. You see companies advertising to protect you from auto repairs, yet it’s more cost effective to maintain your vehicles rather than pay someone to cover the cost of your lack of care. Hopefully, we maintain our vehicles’ health, for a healthy vehicle will serve us best and longest.
Dealing with a pandemic is no different than driving. Our greatest fear will always be the unknown. Educate yourself, learning what you can do, rather than focusing on things out of your control. Take proper care, yet don’t stop living. Limit non-essential contacts, but don’t ignore your personal needs (food, water, sleep, stress-management, self-esteem and staying connected). Sweeping issues under the rug won’t make them go away, and the longer we procrastinate, the more problems grow and the less likely we’ll ever face them.
By definition, a priority is something that can’t be ignored. If you’ve ever flown commercially, you’ve heard flight attendants advise to take care of yourself before you take care of others. You must be good for yourself before you can be good for others. You are important; take care of yourself.
To discuss this or other issues, Dr. Levine can be reached at 661-877-8378.