Covid Awareness

How to comfort home-quarantined patients

Nothing seems out-of-ordinary in this pandemic anymore. From international travel bans to city-wide lockdowns, everything seems so quiet and sane. This is how accustomed we’ve become to the irregularities established around us. With a pandemic comes the added stress of safety and the unprecedented uncertainties in various domains of life. And if by the stroke of fate someone is affected by the factors responsible for the pandemic, also known as COVID-19, they are asked to isolate themselves or be quarantined. Humans are social beings, and when asked to isolate from the rest, they tend to feel anxious and sad. The measures of quarantine, put into effect with good intentions, somewhere adversely affect people’s mental health too. And as said before, “a healthy body results from a healthy mind”.

First and foremost, quarantine prevents the spread of the communicable disease and is nothing to be scared of. Secondly, being quarantined at home may feel like a tedious, monotonous task, however with the following information, you can make it bearable for yourself and your loved ones.

Set up a customized space at home for your loved one who has been advised home-quarantine. This can be done by adding certain things that the individual loves to do, for example, painting, playing games on PlayStation, or as simple as reading books. This could also include adding brighter colours to the room in the form of curtains, ruffled pillows, or even photo-frames of memorable times. The space allocated to the individual should have proper daylight and air. Sunlight affects certain areas in the retina which produce the hormone serotonin. This hormone regulates the mood state and lower levels of this hormone could lead to higher chances of depression and anxiety.

Make sure you communicate with them about how they are feeling in the situation and reassure them constantly. Keeping the morale of the person high is of utmost priority. The constant social support from family and friends is important. According to research studies, social support increases the resilience to stress and enhances the ability to cope with stressors such as illness and anxiety. When an individual knows they have someone they can lean on, during tough times, it becomes easier for them to focus on themselves and recover sooner.

All the tasks undertaken for precautions can seem daunting and monotonous, so everyone in the family can divide the tasks among each other. In the modern age of computers and laptops, it’s never impossible to connect with family. Scheduled family video calls or even movie nights on Netflix Party, can make the days in the week go by with ease.

Small activities like asking the patient to maintain a gratitude journal, or maybe just indulging in a yoga breathing session together, can make the patient feel that he/she is not being side-lined, and will also help the health of the patient.

However, we must not forget that not all people who are home-quarantined are affected by Covid-19. Some are required to follow this rule as a precautionary measures. Because some diseases can be contagious even if people do not yet have symptoms, this step minimizes the spread of the illness during the asymptomatic period. When quarantined, people have admitted to having felt that the time crept by very slowly, and the cabin fever was getting to them eventually. Being confined leads to the internal autonomy of an individual being affected, which in turn has repercussions on the sleep schedule, the cardiovascular system, and impaired executive body functions. In such a scenario it becomes imperative to stick to a routine and follow it through. This could include working from home in the morning and working out in the evening. Working out relaxes the body and leads to better sleep at night.

Lastly, it is better to be informed about all the developments surrounding the pandemic, but at the same time, it is necessary to not become overwhelmed with the onslaught of information. Continuous checking of the statistics of Covid-19 would contribute to more panic and anxiety. The various ways the news is presented can also negatively impact your mental health for a prolonged period.

All of these ideas and strategies, along with precautions, can successfully help an individual in quarantine, while at the same time help you to maintain a sense of structure and manage quarantine with your loved ones.