Confinement: Discover how to fight against the negative effects of confinement

Confinement: Discover how to fight against the negative effects of confinement. The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has required a change in daily routines and habits in most countries.

With this article, you will discover how to fight despite the negative effects of confinement, maintain a positive attitude, and guarantee your optimal performance in all aspects.

But first, what is a lockdown? Negative effects of confinement

It is the separation and restriction of movements imposed on a person or group of people. The main aim of confinement is to slow down and control the transmission of the virus, thus avoiding contagion and controlling the spread. At this time, it is especially important to guarantee the necessary and timely health care in all cases.

What are the negative effects of confinement on people?

Having strong interpersonal relationships is critical to survival throughout life; social isolation is a significant predictor of the risk of death; insufficient social stimulation affects reasoning and memory performance, hormonal homeostasis, brain gray/white matter, connectivity and function, as well as resistance to physical and mental illness; feelings of loneliness can spread through.

Confinement can have strong consequences on people’s mental, physical, and psychological health. We can divide the effects into:

Psychological effects, negative effects of confinement

• Sleep problems.

• Trouble adjusting to present circumstances.

• Fear, anguish, despair, sadness, and emotional sensitivity.

• Obsessive behaviors such as excessive and constant cleaning of the environment where you live, as well as clothes and hands.

• Recurring worry about the future.

• Work and family stress.

• Frustration and uncertainty.

Social effects, negative effects of confinement

The prolonged quarantine in this pandemic leads us to stay at home where we have fewer social interactions. That distancing causes changes in daily life and in the way of acting on a day-to-day basis.

The pandemic affects everyone, and its consequences differ according to individual and social vulnerability. For example, some remote work or virtual classes can be beneficial. However, this same situation would become critical for others.

It is important to face reality looking for prevention alternatives, so it is possible to avoid risks at work, economic, educational, and family levels. Social distancing has been causing changes in interpersonal relationships, daily life, and the way we act, leading us to discipline ourselves to avoid infections.

Mental effects, negative effects of confinement

• It can also include reactions such as sleeping and eating patterns, negative thoughts, subjective discomfort, and headaches.

• Psychosomatic responses: gastritis, accelerated heart rate, among others.

• Consumption of tobacco, alcohol, or other substances.

How can we deal with the effects of confinement?

We must consider some measures in this quarantine stage:

• Take care of basic needs: eat healthily, drink fluids, and sleep regularly.

• Strengthen the emotional state, perform deep breathing techniques.

• Take advantage of ordering or making changes at home.

• Assertive communication.

• Use of free time, listening to music, watching funny movies, reading, virtual communication with friends or family, doing pleasant activities.

• Plan routines such as aerobics, gymnastics, or others that we can do at home.

• Rediscover ourselves and recognize ourselves as valuable people.

• Comply with the hours of sleep.

• Avoid inappropriate behaviors (consumption of alcohol, tobacco, etc.)

• Seek help from mental health professionals

Confinement is not the end of the world

While it is true that confinement is a complicated situation, day by day, we face challenges that life puts in us the way, and we have to face them to move forward. This is just one more challenge that life has put in front of you, and you must take care to overcome it.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t feel bad from time to time, but you can’t allow yourself to stay in a constant cycle of negativity. Day by day, you must be grateful for the fact that you are still alive, that you are still breathing and healthy, that you have a family that loves you and always cares about you, that you have friends, that you have a roof to sleep under, that you have food on the table, that you have a stable job that allows you to survive, etc.

Of course, not all people comply with the previous premises, but they can be thankful for their things and continue working to gain those they do not yet have.

The quarantine has been an opportunity for families to strengthen their relationship, reflect on life and rethink their goals. There has been an opportunity to grow and skills that they did not even know they had. Not everything that has happened during quarantine is negative, and you have to focus on the positive aspects to ensure optimal health.

Conclusions

Now that you have discovered how to fight despite the negative effects of confinement, you can practice the best tips to maintain an optimal state of physical, mental, and psychological health.