How to Deal with Loneliness If You're Self-Isolated During the Coronavirus Outbreak

Human is a pack animal by default. Back in time, they have learnt to form a group and stay strong amongst the odds of nature and wild lives. This pack has converted to society, which has been there to support the solo human being by every means.

Before the pandemic created by Corona has hit the world, we used to relate loneliness with the senior citizens living life in assisted living, or the teenagers who are unable to cope with the peer pressure.

Loneliness is simply a state of mind when one seeks the company of something or someone (it can be human or even a pet or a book or anything with extreme attachment). But in time of Corona, the Novel coronavirus has separated us in the name of social distancing, and we are now more connected with the same feeling of loneliness, worldwide.

How to Deal with Loneliness If You're Self-Isolated During the Coronavirus Outbreak

How to Deal with Loneliness During Social Isolation

There are some steps in our thinking process that can help us from feeling lonely during this period.

Don’t get drawn into a negative spiral :

To begin with, we must not think that we are alone. We are connected with the rest of the world, though virtually. Thanks to the advancement of modern technology, the internet is there to provide us with enough options to get in touch, though virtually, to all the friends and colleagues, not to mention the relatives and families.

You have lots of people who are concerned about your well-being. They want to know if you have eaten if you have enough grocery and how you spent your afternoon. These small things of your’s matter to them and they really want to get in touch with you through phone or video call.

Adjust your mindset:

Before you have started to feel sad and morose on the break of dawn, thinking you have nothing to do and no one to meet, you need to hold for a second and think about the reality. As per the psychologists, loneliness is not actually a fact, but a feeling that you are getting into your head. If you judge your circumstance and make your mind to stay happy and content, then the loneliness can never affect you.

You can start to enjoy your own company and take the rest that you have longed for. It will be torturous if you will keep thinking about the negativity of the situation and feel sad.

Connect With Friends & Family:

Get connected with your favourite persons through video. Making a short video call to your family or video conferencing the group of your school friends can make you pass an evening beautifully as it will bring down all the nostalgia and memories of childhood. You can make the call as long as you wish and that way you will be able to pass the lonely evenings.

Embrace Solitude:

Take time and spend it with yourself. Do not always depend on people to get rid of your loneliness. If you constantly keep calling some people or others, it will not help you in the long run. This is a way to make you dependent upon others to cure the problem of loneliness. Rather you should accept the loneliness and make it a boon for yourself.

Put the phone down and listen to some soothing music. It can make you feel peace with the inner self and evoke the spiritual side of yours. Think of some happy moments or lovely people who are not there with you now, cherish the memories and relive those moments.

Keep a schedule:

Do keep a schedule of your daily life. Do not be lazy as it gradually affects the body and mind. You can take a nap in the afternoon or get up half an hour late in the morning if you wish. But do not lie down the whole day because you do not have any target to meet or any meeting to attend. This physical lethargy will make you feel more hollow and will deactivate your mental spur.

Rather engage yourself in household chores and do them meticulously, like you would have done if you would be in office. Set a goal to finish all the chores within a fixed time and try to stick to that, without getting diverted by random TV shows or YouTube videos. Enjoy your free time by relaxing with your favourite programmes once the jobs are done on time.

Conclusion:

To cope with this isolation period, we need not lose our hope and sanity. Rather we need to believe in ourselves and think positively as there are no other measures than not to give up hope and wait for the good days to come back. But if during isolation you find yourself with very poor mental health and aren’t able to pull yourself out of negative feelings, it is important to seek out professional help. Consider calling a crisis line or an online therapy service to find out about options. Stay Safe, Stay Strong!