The Viral Virus: Effects of Media Consumption on Mental Health During COVID-19

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), overexposure to the media paired with the stay at home orders in place are having a global impact on mental health. This holds true for people at home on lockdown and for essential workers on the front lines, so what can be done to lessen these inevitable stressors that accompany COVID-19?

The Stress

The stress we are currently experiencing globally is unlike the stress that many have ever faced before. Whether it's contracting the deadly virus, having an insecure job or finances in general, dealing with strain in one’s household dynamic, prolonged social isolation, experiencing grief or loss or any kind and the list continues.

“It's a stress that's caused by at least three things: the change, we just had this major change in our lives and our lives might change going forward 2. Loss of control, we don't have much control over our lives 3. Going forward in uncertainty,” said Dr. Edward Schicatano, professor of psychology at Wilkes University.

This can include various aspects such as not knowing a definitive date as to when your state or country will begin to lift the guidelines set in place, the CDC saying that there is another symptom associated with COVID-19 that was declared unassociated last week, the fact that were able to freely operate through life a month ago and are no longer able to, Janet down the street saying that her factory closed down and yours

did not, among many other things that we have all experienced.

The effects of these stressors can vary from person to person. One person can become sad and depressed during these times and others might become angry or dissociated. It might even result in behaviors that are atypical for people during a regular day prior to the lockdown.

“I’ve seen people fighting over toilet paper, I’ve seen verbal arguments, I even saw someone take a pack of Lysol wipes out of someone else's cart once,” said Tyler Buchinsky, manager at Boyer’s Food Markets Inc. in Hazleton, Pa.

This is due to the fact that in some cases, fear accompanies the uncertainty. According to Schicatano, humans go into protect and defend mode in the beginning stages of fear. People acknowledge that this is a scary time and thus, it results in things like stocking up on the essentials like toilet paper and disinfectant. It is instinct to worry about the availability of our resources; it is a survival tactic.

Other effects acknowledged by the CDC include, but are not limited to, changes in sleep or eating patterns, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, worsening of chronic health problems, worsening of mental health conditions, and increased use of alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs.

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), anxiety also increases in times of uncertainty. Anxiety, like stress, has physical and psychological effects. Dealing with these challenges over an extended period of time can also result in depression and other chronic health problems.

This stress, fear and anxiety is not only prevalent among the general public, but also (and in some cases, especially), for essential workers on the front lines. From extended hours on the job, changes being made constantly and more people in groc

ery stores and hospitals than ever before, it could be a challenge to say the least.

“Mentally, I’ve felt the stress of the pandemic early on. We all had no idea what to expect and it was scary to think I would be exposed directly to the virus. Policies were being changed daily and it was a lot to keep up on, but I knew it was to keep ourselves and our patients as safe as possible,” said Kaitlyn Willis, emergency room (ER) registered nurse (RN) at Lehigh Valley Health Network.

Willis went onto explain that the ER is a fast paced and tiresome environment to work in regardless of the current circumstances, but that having fear hanging over her head has exacerbated her exhaustion. She also explained that the personal protective equipment (PPE) is far from comfortable as the N95 masks they are required to wear

dig into the skin after an extended period of time and even leave marks and imprints.

“It’s for my protection so I can’t complain, but it’s been a journey,” said Willis.

The Media

People tend to heavily rely on the media during these unprecedented times whether it’s to gauge what they might experience, find out the latest information about the virus, and to keep in contact with loved ones and inform them about what they know, etc.

Do I have to wear a mask at a drive-through? Are there long lines outside of my local grocery store? Is my shortness of breath from anxiety or do I have COVID-19? When will my state start to reopen? How “at-risk” am I? What time is the curfew in my town? Are stores restocking?

These are some questions that are lingering as all media outlets have information that is constantly being updated as the virus continues to run its course. Sin

ce the information is constantly being updated, people are unceasingly checking the news, social media and government updates as a result.

According to the APA, both the means and amount of media exposure can increase perceptions of threat and activate the "fight or flight response," which can lead to subsequent physical and mental health problems. Several studies conducted regarding media consumption after previous collective traumas such as 9/11 and the Boston Marathon bombing showed that it does have an effect on psychological and physical responses following these harrowing events.

In addition, everyone might not be able to differentiate between credible versus fraudulent sources of information, especially on social media platforms where those lines are even more blurred. Now, information is even circulating about the virus lingering into the fall or having the potential to return for a second time. Whether this information is true or not, its spiking fear.

“It’s a new virus and it's deadly and when they hear those things,

people get scared...the virus does have an impact, but the media has been kind of making it seem a lot worse than it is,” said Buchinsky.

Many news outlets and social media platforms have displayed photos and information regarding grocery stores being out of stock of essential items, especially during the beginning stages of the virus. Consequently, the anxiety that develops in times of uncertainty rises exponentially when information is unknown or ineffectively communicated because fluctuating information only further enhances the uncertainty. These photos and information have caused people to believe that stores do not have the necessary it

ems available, resulting in hoarding, stealing and panic.

“A guy came in fuming and dropping the ‘F-bomb’ asking why we didn’t have hand sanitizing wipes... He looked angry and scared and was cursing at me and I had to explain about the shortage of sanitizer and how we won’t likely be getting it in.

Buchinsky went on to explain that hand-sanitizer is the only item that will currently not be restocked at Boyer's Food Markets for an extended period of time since it is being primarily shipped to health care workers. However, other essential items like soap, toilet paper, milk, bread, eggs, etc. will continually be restocked even if it takes slightly longer than normal.

“There’s not a shortage, it’s just selling fast,” said Buchinsky.

Furthermore, one can become desensitized to the danger and happenings of the virus with incessantly reading and rereading information regarding it. we can also become desensitized. For example, one day you might see that 150 people died in New York City, the next 200, the next 300 and as these numbers rise, one might no longer be shocked or scared by that report.

“We stop thinking it's dangerous when the fear overwhelms us,” said Schicatano.

Our perception then changes, and we block the information out completely. This can be beneficial in times where you are trying to relax and get your mind off of the virus. However, it can be detrimental in other situations if you or your family member would contract the virus. Those circumstances would obviously need to be taken seriously.

It does not help that a vast majority of the incessant information being consumed falls into the negative margin. This does not mean that all reports on the virus should be feel-good stories, but the constant reminder of the death toll and about social distancing regulations that are causing people to be separated from their friends and family can have an effect.

“It wreaks havoc on our psyche: all negative, no positive. That plays into depression. If you keep practicing on the negative, your brain just becomes wired to be negative. We aren’t talking about the recovery as much,” said Schicatano.

Social media also plays a more prominent role in the negativity. As people are focusing on the negativity, they might be more inclined to share their own posts and potentially spread it further than more traditional news outlets. On Facebook and Twitter, people can quote information from news outlets and add their own text at the top of the posts.

Where news updates might state to avoid going to the hospital unless one has severe symptoms and that visitors are not permitted in hospitals, they might be tweaked or over-dramatized by the general public on social media like a game of telephone.

Sharing and communicating one’s opinions on social media might be an immediate release of tension or stress for the moment. When significant information and a global pandemic is present, however, this can quickly become a concern.

“I think many were too afraid to come to the ER for their emergencies and are now coming in sicker since they didn’t get the emergent care they required,” said Willis.

This holds true with other information regarding the virus such as how various areas around the world have experienced a decrease in pollution, how information with regard to global and local health systems have been revealed, how political figures have presented information, how reports recently came out about aliens and a swarm of killer hornets and again, the list continues. With a lot of information comes a lot of room for opinions surrounding it, and more opportunity for said information to be misconstrued.

“What ends up happening is confirmation bias.

You’ll look at information that goes with your beliefs… What ends up happening is that we filter the information that goes against our beliefs. For example, if you believe [COVID-19] is a hoax, you’ll say the death numbers aren’t real,” said Schicatano.

Thus, people are likely to consistently share information that they agree with and surround themselves with opinions that match their own. Similarly to the desensitization, people might overlook the danger. Considering the previous example, if people think the virus is a hoax, they might refrain from social distancing, refuse to wear a mask or not get proper care if they exhibit any of the symptoms associated with the virus.

Coping

The CDC states that older people and people with chronic diseases who are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19, children and teens, people who are helping with the COVID-19 response and people who have mental health conditions including problems with substance use are more prone to responding strongly to the stress. However, anyone is at risk of facing the repercussions.

“I think everyone is feeling the stress of the pandemic and mental health is so important. With everything being closed, I think people are becoming more depressed, not knowing how to release the stress in ways they have in the past such as working out, self-care, going out to restaurants/bars, therapy, hanging out with loved ones, etc.,” said Willis.

In one of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) live Q&A with expert Aiysha Malik on March 10 during the beginning stages of the virus, Malik stated that it was important to think about mental health as an aspect of the public health response. Experts knew that mental health would be of concern during the pandemic from the get-go.

With that, coping strategies can be adopted and integrated into one’s daily routine. In addition, there are larger strategies and information presented by the CDC and other organizations to help mitigate stress. Together, these efforts can help people attemp

t to lessen the degree of the burden.

Schicatano gave several suggestions about implementations that can be made. The first was to give a meaning to what you are facing. For example, when someone dies, we give it meaning and go through stages in order to accept it. However, grief can occur from not being able to see your friends from college because you had to leave or over the loss of a job. You will go through all of the uncomfortable stages, but once a meaning is given, acceptance will follow.

The next suggestion he had was to try and do something new every day. This could be as simple as taking a new route during a walk. In addition to doing new things, he suggested that keeping some consistency can help us return to a state of normalcy since most of us are used to a daily routine. One can eat at 12:00 every day for lunch, for example.

Another thing he stressed was to get some form of exercise in along with taking time to be in solitude. Taking time for yourself might seem redundant as we already have to isola

te ourselves. However, especially if you are quarantined with others, it is important to have productive time alone for reflection and relaxation of the mind.

“Go outside and walk or do some exercise and spend some time where you’re alone to pull away to reflect, pause, meditate,” said Schicatano.

One other practice that Schicatano mentioned was to take fear for what it is.

“Fear is a thought, take it as that. Panic is a reaction and it is one that is immediate, but you can just step back, pause and then respond,” said Schicatano.

Pausing to think about your fear might change reaction and make it more effective. Instead of going on Facebook and venting about one’s feelings toward how the government is handling COVID-19, they take a deep breath and calm down. If and when there are rampant emotions, one can opt for calling a friend and talking things through. We are social beings, so calling a friend or family member once a day can help in general just to get a taste of social interaction.

Finally, and arguably most importantly, it is important to take breaks from scrolling social media and watching the news. The APA suggests that the public should find one or two trusted sources (CDC, WHO, etc.) for information on critical updates. They also suggest being cautious of reports by people on social media “whose veracity cannot be ensured.”

While it is unclear when regulations will be lifted and when the world will assume regular operations, it is certain that one day this will happen. People will go back to work, continue their hobbies, be with their friends, see their families and life will continue.

“The thing to remember in all of this is to think about what your purpose is in life. That purpose is still here even though it might be delayed. The true core of you is still there. If your why and purpose is still there, then we will be okay,” said Schicatano.

For more information on the effects of COVID-19 on mental health, tips for fact checking or suggested coping methods and strategies in place, visit the CDC.gov or APA.org.