It’s incredible how much research is coming out on the psychological impact of Covid-19. Today alone, I found twenty new peer-reviewed studies related to how mindfulness can mitigate much of the psychological symptoms related to Covid-19. Many of these studies were technical, not of immediate practical use. However, a study in the Behavior Analysis in Practice offered straightforward advice for successfully dealing with the pandemic's psychological effects. Here are some of the highlights (Coyne et al., 2020).
Small things matter. Instead of focusing on long-term goals such as "losing 10 lbs." or “being a better parent or daughter or son,” find small things you can do now to promote progress toward long-term goals. It might be taking time to call your mother or father just to listen or eating an apple instead of a cookie.
Everything is related. When it comes to our health and well-being, everything is interconnected. For example, improving your sleep quality can help with impulse control, lift mood, and even support immune function (Furman et al., 2019).
Patterns vs. perfection. Often, we focus on a discrete event instead of the long-term impact of patterns. For example, one cookie occasionally as a treat is not likely to significantly impact our health. However, if we have many cookies every day, that will.
Meaning of small things. The reason small things can impact the long-term is the intention behind the action. For example, when you take a few minutes to reach out to someone for no other reason than to see how they are, it says to the other person that they matter and are worth it.
Ask for help and offer help. We are social beings and have survived because we cooperate and support each other. Today, it seems we often emphasize doing things on our own instead of our interdependency. When we seek and offer help, we find that the benefits flow two ways, causing an upward spiral of positive feelings.
Self-care is an act of love and kindness. When we take time for ourselves, the quality of that time is more important than the actual action. For example, it might be taking brief pauses throughout the day to show self-compassion and appreciation for all we do and a recognition that we are doing the best we can.
With so much going on, none of us needs something else on our to do list, even if those things will help us. That's why I thought this simple approach was so beneficial. Instead of creating a list of things to do, it describes how shifting our perspective can make a big impact on our mental well-being. I hope you take a moment to reflect on how you can lift some of the burden you have placed on yourself and free yourself to consider how small things matter.
References
Coyne, L. W., Gould, E. R., Grimaldi, M., Wilson, K. G., Baffuto, G., & Biglan, A. (2020). First things first: Parent psychological flexibility and self-compassion during COVID-19. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 1.
Furman, D., Campisi, J., Verdin, E., Carrera-Bastos, P., Targ, S., Franceschi, C., et al. (2019). Chronic inflammation in the etiology of disease across the life span. Nature Medicine, 25, 1822–1832. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-019-0675-0.