Survey Says 57% of Women Stressed &Anxious During Pandemic, Here's How to Overcome It

Women Stressed &Anxious During Pandemics. Photo: Shutterstock

The COVID-19 pandemic that hit the world has had a significant impact on various aspects of life. Not only physical threats, pandemics also threaten the mental health of every individual, especially women and girls.

This is even evidenced by the results of a recent survey conducted by the United Nations Agency (UN) for gender equality in women's empowerment, UN Women, in collaboration with Indosat Ooredoo.

The survey, published in the report "Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 on Gender and Achieving Sustainable Development Goals in Indonesia" said that COVID-19 has disproportionately affected women's mental and emotional health with 57% of women experiencing increased stress and anxiety, compared to 48% of men. Illustration of a housewife cleaning the house. Photo: Shutter Stock

If referring to the findings above, we may wonder, why are women the most vulnerable group of people affected by mental health during this pandemic?

According to clinical psychologist and founder of Enlightmind-The Consultant Psychology Company, Alvieni Angelica, M.Psi., psychologist, women are more expressive in expressing their thoughts and feelings compared to men who try to store and channel their stress through a variety of activities. Adolescent and adult clinical psychologist, Alvieni Angelica, M.Psi. Photo: doc. Special

Alvieni also said that during this pandemic women carried a heavier burden than men. This is what ultimately makes women vulnerable to mental health impacts during pandemics.

"During this pandemic, we know that the time of gathering all family members at home becomes longer. Usually women take on more intense roles to attend and help other members of their families. For example, with the transition of children's schools that were initially offline to online, women so simultaneously took the role of mentoring in children, "said Alvieni when contacted coilWOMAN, on Friday (6/11).

"Thus for women who also have professional jobs, the burden of roles that must be carried out becomes increased during the pandemic. If men perform the same role, it can be believed that their stress levels will be increased when compared to normal conditions," he added.

Stress and anxiety triggers in women during pandemics

Mental health disorders (such as stress and anxiety) experienced by women during this pandemic, can be caused by various things. According to Alvieni, here are some things that can trigger mental health disorders in women during a pandemic:

  • Role as breadwinner, mother who accompanies children's online school, as well as the role of housewife.

  • When there are sick family members, women are usually more present and accompanying. Illness in the midst of this pandemic is certainly more of a potential for increased anxiety.

  • The tendency to communicate more with the social environment through social media also makes women more exposed to various pandemic stories. This becomes an additional database in the mind that triggers anxiety.

  • A tendency to be more expressive of the feelings experienced.

Illustration of a stress nursing mother. Photo: Shutter Stock

Alvieni said if the stress is allowed to continue for a prolonged time, it can trigger the onset of distress. Distress itself is stress that eventually can no longer be overcome and lasts for a long time.

"In addition, anxiety that is not treated properly can also cause more severe anxiety disorders such as obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) that manifests in behavior; Such as washing hands many times, using antiseptic soap when bathing until repeatedly to take a long time, and so forth, "said Alvieni.

Even in some cases, Alvieni said that stress and anxiety can cause panic disorder. For example, when we see a crowd of people in the market, instantly our breath becomes short and jerks, the heart beats fast, until the body's reaction freezes.

"This bad impact can actually not only be experienced by women, but men can also. The point is when stress and anxiety in the initial phase are not treated properly, it will manifest into more serious psychological disorders."

Tips for addressing mental health problems during a pandemic

To overcome various mental health problems or disorders during this pandemic, Alvieni also provides some tips for you that can be practiced to maintain mental health during the coronavirus pandemic:

1. Discuss with partners and other family members Cooking With Couples Photo: Doc. Shutterstock

So that the workload while at home does not accumulate in you, try to discuss the division of labor with partners or other family members. Sharing this work role aims so that the work does not accumulate in you and you will not experience a lot of pressure experienced every day.

2. Reduce exposure to news and social media around pandemics Photo: Shutter Stock

Negative news about pandemics can trigger feelings of fear, anxiety, and depression. For that, limit your time to watch, read, or hear news about the pandemic, be it from television, print media, or social media.

Even so, don't completely shut yourself off from important information. Pick up the information you receive critically and wisely. Get information about the COVID-19 pandemic only from reliable sources.

3. Maintain communication with family and friends Video call with family members. Photo: Shutterstock

Take the time to communicate with family, friends, friends, and coworkers about things outside of the pandemic. The goal is that you don't 'nurture' the anxiety surrounding the pandemic.

4. Perform mental health treatment regularlycom-Illustration of doing yoga at home. Photo: Shutterstock

Various mental health treatments; Such as yoga, meditation, mindful walking, journaling, painting or coloring, to meditation and sun bathing, you can do during quarantine at home.

This mental health treatment we need to do on a regular basis, because we never know when anxiety arises. In addition, this mental health treatment also aims to train the muscles of consciousness.

5. Nutritious eating and drinking Women eat healthy. Photo: Thinkstock

Consume nutritious foods and drinks, so that the spleen and stomach are healthy which results in well-maintained physical energy.

6. Get up early and breathe fresh aircom-Illustration of waking up in the morning. Photo: Shutterstock

Finally, make it a habit to get up early and breathe fresh air. The goal, is to provide healthy oxygen intake for the lungs and help provide oxygen intake to the bloodstream so that the body feels fresher. When the body is fresh, emotions will usually become more comfortable.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How Women Ward Off Stress in the Office

Image
Eliminating the cause of stress completely feels impossible. So, all you can do is deal with that stress in a more ingenious way. Well, the ways in question are: 1. Find a New Fun Hobby Whatever hobbies have stopped due to busyness, try to do it again. Leave time every day so that the brain and feelings You're more relaxed. If the tension continues, where can it work optimally the next day? Get together with friends Staring at a laptop, competitive office conditions, and a messy house will only make it tired and difficult to get out. The easiest way to get it out is to spend time with friends. While hanging out at your favorite place to eat, you and your best friend can exchange stories. Other Articles: Can Stress Really Trigger Infertility? Get enough sleep Not only the mind is complicated, your body can also be tired and need a short break from all pressure. If so, then the solution is sleep! Because, sleep is the single best activity to recharge after a day of use. Before going ...
Read more

Trauma in Women: Facts and How to Deal With It! - Riliv Story

Image
How to deal with trauma between men and women is very different, dear! Trauma in women is more severe for them, even harder to forget, than trauma in men. There are many facts you may not know yet, and how to deal with any trauma you may have experienced, dear! Let's go! Brain condition when traumatized in womenPhoto by Ben White on Unsplash Traumatic experiences involve most or almost all of the senses—sight, hearing, smell, sometimes sense of taste, and physical pain. Each of these sensations is recorded and stored in different parts of the brain, and can leave deep psychological scars. After experiencing a traumatic event, it is not uncommon for people to suffer from certain levels of stress, depression, and anxiety disorders. Nightmares, sleep disorders including the inability to fall asleep; It is also a common indicator of post-trauma. If these symptoms no longer bother the traumatized person after a month, then they are likely suffering from acute stress disorder. But, if sy...
Read more

Refer! These 8 Types of Exercise Are Effective for Stress

Image
Parapuan.co - Comrade Puan, both consciously and unconsciously, our daily activities are inseparable from the name of stress. Stress itself is a disorder that usually affects mental and physical. Read Also: Frequent Overthinking Can Have a Bad Impact, Here Are 4 Tips to Overcome It Well, so that stress does not continue for too long, then this condition should be immediately relieved, such as by exercising. By exercising your body can manage stress well. Quoted from Everyday Health, there are various types of exercise that can be done, namely: Dancing has many physical, mental, and even emotional benefits. Dancing also increases the elegance and agility of the body as the heart rate gets better. It is known that dancing fosters a sense of togetherness and relationship with others, which will have good impacts such as lowering stress levels and increasing happiness. Circuit training replaces weight training movements with cardio, where there is a short break in every stroke performed. T...
Read more