2. ACTIONS THAT PROMOTE MENTAL
HEALTH IN OLDER PEOPLE IN THE
FACE OF COVID-19
As countries have implemented measures to restrict movement to reduce the
number of COVID-19 virus infections, more and more of us are radically changing
our daily routine.
The new realities of telecommuting, temporary unemployment, home schooling,
and lack of physical contact with family, friends, and colleagues take some
getting used to. Adapting to these changes in lifestyle and dealing with the fear
of contracting COVID-19 and the concern for those close to the most vulnerable
is difficult, and can be especially hard for people with mental health disorders
Fortunately, there are many things we can do to take care of our mental health
and help others who may need more support and attention.
Confinement, even voluntary, can produce fear, anxiety, loneliness, anger,
despair, boredom, among other emotional reactions that, taken to the extreme,
can also generate emotional alterations that put the immune system of the
people who experience them at risk. . Elaboration of the infographic: Ehécatl
Cabrera • Creative Commons: Attribution - Share Alike
3. ACTIONS THAT PROMOTE MENTAL HEALTH IN
OLDER PEOPLE IN THE FACE OF COVID-19
• Confinement, even voluntary, can produce fear, anxiety, loneliness,
anger, despair, boredom, among other emotional reactions that,
taken to the extreme, can also generate emotional alterations that
put the immune system of the people who experience them at risk. .
Elaboration of the infographic: Ehécatl Cabrera • Creative Commons:
Attribution - Share Alike
• The National Health Emergency
• Decreed by the Mexican government on March 30, 2020, it should
lead to the decision to stay at home for a month. Confinement, even
voluntary, can produce fear, anxiety, loneliness, anger, despair,
boredom, among other emotional reactions.
4. IF YOU ARE AN OLDER PERSON
• Maintain regular contact with your loved ones, for example by
phone, email, social media, or video conference.
• As much as possible, stick to regular routines and times for eating,
sleeping, and doing activities that you enjoy.
• Learn simple physical exercises to do at home during quarantine to
stay mobile.
• Find out how to get practical help if needed; for example, how to call
a taxi, order food, or request medical attention. Make sure you have
a month or more of your usual medication supplies. If necessary, ask
family, friends or neighbors for help.
5. FIVE ACTIONS THAT HELP REDUCE ANXIETY
1. Maintain the certainty that this contingency will pass. Understand the new coexistence situation
as yet another form of interaction that will be temporary.
2. Conserve daily activities as much as possible. This implies falling asleep and waking up at the
same time. Have breakfast, lunch and dinner at regular times. Grooming themselves as if they were
going to work or school, even if they stay home. This will help maintain consistency on a daily basis.
3. Carry out practical activities that involve some challenge, be it physical or intellectual. For
example, baking a cake to share later, exercising for 10-15 minutes more, fixing the closet, selecting
clothes to donate or fix. This will give extra meaning to the activity carried out while neglecting the
feeling of anxiety.
4. Take deep breaths-breaths periodically throughout the waking time. Oxygenate the brain helps to
face with better resources of patience and attitude the interactions that could become tense during
the day.
5. Make a gratitude journal. At the end of the day, write three or five lines with short sentences
where you are grateful for that event, action or circumstance that deserves to be gratefully
acknowledged. This will give value to the day and meaning to what has been lived
