The COVID-19 pandemic affected everyone, causing undue stress and depression that hamper optimal performance of daily activities. While the pandemic appears to wane down, there is a need to recover from such pressure that haunted the best of us. There is a need for therapy for stress and depression for those badly affected by this unusually persisting phenomenon of this generation. Here are 18 natural ways to do it.
Everyone of us was immensely taken aback by the sudden violent surge of the Global Covid-19 Pandemic that first emerged on December 2019 at Wuhan China to date. Constituting the entire universe came instantaneously to an imposing, overbearing halt in our journey called life.
Quarantine Measures and Their Effects
With the universal implementation of an ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) to an MECQ (Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine) for two years to date, each of the populace was compelled by necessity to be upright and stay at home. Henceforth, the universal structure and conditions of the Global Economy have unfortunately befallen to a disturbingly sunken fate.
A myriad of offices suspended operations, global giant corporate world ceased operations, stores and malls, schools, commercial buildings, restaurants, boutiques, cafe, tourism, airports and seaports all over the world—everything else disintegrated, went collapsed and STOPPED. No one can leave one’s house or even travel under any circumstance magnanimously unless it is of an inevitable nature.
Understandably, business on food substance essential to give energy or build tissue, restaurants, cafe, wet markets, grocery, gym, fitness centers, pharmaceuticals, hospitals, dedicated front liners and elect government offices were by natural means merely allowed to dutifully and only function to a purpose. Wearing a mask made from china, washing of hands, rubbing alcohol, hand sanitizer and social distancing are being implemented to ensure safety for everyone.
Global Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic
50% of the global settlement on populace went perturbingly unemployed, senior citizens, children and teen students globally were all sorely confined in the four corners of their homes with no one to talk to and go to for years during the covid-19 outbreak.
With everyone on their homes 24/7, every human activity detained, devastating high rate of unemployment, every collapsed of small and giant businesses, every withering downfall of economic activity globally—every family, everyone else felt on the brink of concerns about the future, the food of the children, the health, on accomplishing the overbearing task at hand, etc.
Historically speaking, the Justinian Plague has a death toll of 30-50million people, yes 1/2 of the world’s population. The Spanish Flu long time ago historically has infected 500million, a quarter of the total world population; and 50 million deaths, which lasted for two years.
Eventually, everything ends. We have now the diminishing Delta last year 2021 and uprising Omicron viruses this year 2022, BUT We have our ALPHA And OMEGA—we have our SOVEREIGN God, an ABSOLUTE God beyond everything else and everyone else. COVID-19 will end soon by God’s grace. We just have to pray without ceasing and put our faith in our Mighty God.
Moving On to Counter Stress and Depression
So how can you physically and mentally make yourself fit and be able to move forward? How can you plan for coordination of your resources and expenditures? How can you efficiently de-stress oneself? What must one do in coping up with stress and depression from Covid-19 Pandemic we are in right now? What specific stress management is effective for everyone?
The following section suggests natural ways of therapy for stress and depression. Pick one, two, a combination, or all of them to regain your energies and face life anew.
Therapy for Stress and Depression: 17 Natural Ways
Here are the essentials for coping up with stress and depression from Covid-19 pandemic:
1. Bike with Your Preferred Group
Engage in a Biking Team with your group pals or in your community for 30mins to an hour, once or twice a week. It thoroughly augments your body’s cardiovascular fitness, strength, and flexibility. An intervention or modification management of any disease. To top it all, it essentially reduces your stress levels.
2. Connect with Your Best Friends
Talk online or visit your best friends. It helps develop your self-confidence and self-control and further enhances your sense of belongingness and purpose in life. It’s a morale booster, booster happiness and decreases your stress levels. This helps you cope up with trauma, e.g. natural calamity or disaster, serious illness, physically abusive husband, divorced parents, or a death of a loved one.
3. Play Board Games
Play chess and other board games with your family and friends. Augment your concentration, excellent memory through associative mechanism and develop problem-solving skills. It helps you establish better communications and rapport with others happily.
4. Build Rapport with Friends and Family
Have a simple Bbq night/dinner or a brunch picnic with your friendly neighborhood. Make friends with your neighbors. It makes you feel your deep involvement in the community and you get to unwind with them.
5. Attend Sunday Services
Attend a regular Sunday Service &hear the pastor’s sermons with your family. Church provides us a favorable opportunity to reflect on gratitude, self-control, self care and forgiveness. Helps us build rapport with Christian friends and family.
6. Join Prayer Meetings
Join regular prayer meetings and bible studies for gratitude on answered prayers, acquiring directions from God and further reduce your stress hormones. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path…
7. Read the Holy Bible
Read the Holy Bible to find out and determine God’s truth and grow in your faith, which reduces stress. Human as we all are, realize our need for God Almighty. You will receive a proper guidance on how to live and be truly happy as a Christian. Experience how it is to be free and have a genuine joyful life in Jesus because negativity, dark emotions, anger, hot temper, hatred, jealousy, a bully person and foul words are not from God BUT from God’s enemy.
A bully and malign wicked individuals have tremendously suffered in their past, which makes that person’s soul entrap in a steel cage, henceforth making people around them have an agonizing experience, too. Only God can give you total freedom from that.
Pray for that person in your family or friends. The pastor can likewise pray for you. The fruit of the Spirit is upright love, patience, a forgiving soul, calm, positive mindset, full of gratitude, happiness, joyful, compassionate, faithful, motivate others, seeks God at all times and a lot of good things.
Absolutely, praying every day is a wonderful therapy for stress and depression. It just works.
8. Ask Your Pastor to Pray for You
Talk to your spiritually matured church pastors who can pray for you, this reduce stress. Having a joyful pastor is a blessing., the whole church reaps the wonderful benefits. Likewise, co-church goers will remind you that trials in this life are but one temporary thing. (2 Corinthians 4: 17)
9. Read Motivational Articles and Books
Read Motivational Articles and Books to change complicated ideas and assist you to move forward. This inspires us when our normal motivation has lapsed. And gives you wisdom to get your focus back.
10. Listen to Uplifting Songs
Download and listen every day to the P& W songs of “Don Moen” and “Hillsongs” which give you a source of strength and helps relieves your pain and trauma. It facilitates finding meaning in trials. Let the word of Christ cover you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace. Colossians 3: 16.
11. Explore Opportunities for Joint Activities with the Family
Talk to your family and siblings every day and you may also take your family to a vacation therapy to improve your mental health. This also helps your child perform well in academe and lower risks of behavioral problems. This further lengthens life expectancy. Get in tune with nature with the family.
Kindly refer to my article on 13 Essential Psychological Elements on Raising Temperamental Kids to help you handle children with temperament issues.
Walking into the woods, a carefree picnic at an open space or at the seashore. Walking barefoot at the sea has calming effects, has benefits—connected to earth and the discovery of earth’s energy and the healing energy field around us.
Each indeed had a frequency and a therapeutic electric tense existence, according to the scientists. Grounding and earthing provides health benefits like better sleep, less pain, calming effect on behavior, reduced stress, etc.
12. Exercise Regularly
Deep breathing and an exercise regularly 2x or 3x a week for 30minutes to improve your mental health and mood. It helps keep your thinking and learning skills sharp as you age. Have sports and physical hobby e.g. exercise and sports, lower blood cholesterol levels, balance blood sugar, burn down fat tissues and reduce stress.
13. Join an Organization
Join an organization in your community and learn more about yourself and eventually you learn how to work with a team and gain leadership skills.
14. Eat Healthy Food
Eat healthy foods, fruits and veggies. Have calamansi juice, pomelo fruit or oranges which not only provide vitamin C but protect your memory, reduces fatigue and stress, and re-hydrate your body and immune system from any sickness.
15. View Things Positively
Have a positive outlook in life for a better health of your heart and provide better relationships or social life. Plus a better recovery process. Psalm 147: 4-5 “He determines the number of the stars; He gives to all of them their names. Great is our LORD, and abundant in power; His understanding is beyond measure.”
16. Entertain Happy Thoughts
Entertain Happy thoughts, happy memories. Once you feel sad or angry, immediately go down on your knees and pray to God. Give your troubles to God and experience a joyful life in the LORD.
17. Pray Always
PRAY. Prayer is an elemental part of your Maslow’s hierarchy needs, focusing on maximizing the wellbeing of people and achieving your potentials. You want to discern and recognize the nature of how Christian Believers of Christ are notably fitting and well adapted, stress-free and happy? Merely two (2) easy, powerful secret techniques for you:
- PRAY directly to God and not to man-made false gods because God is a jealous God.
- Accept Jesus as your LORD and Savior. Experience a marvelous transformation in how it is to be happy, enjoying well-being and contentment living your day to day with Jesus.
3 Bible Verse on God’s love for humankind:
- Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations. (Jeremiah 1: 5)
- The LORD is not slow in keeping His promise. As some understand slowness. Instead, He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish. But everyone to come to repentance. (2Peter 3: 9)
- And if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7: 14)
2 Additional Tips:
- Eating ice cream with your best friend lessens your stress level.
- Eating your comfort food once in a while also lessens stress levels.
I hope these natural tips that serve as therapy for stress and depression will work for you.
Life is tough this pandemic, but you are absolutely tougher in the LORD. Let go of your worries, let go of any anxiety, and let God fight your battles. Our Sovereign God has lost no battle yet.
A few good things may end, but a Better One is around the bend. Keep the FAITH.
References
Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, US Department of Health and Human Services (2021). Mental Health and Coping during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic. Retrieved 21 February 2022, from https://www.hhs.gov/coronavirus/mental-health-and-coping/index.html
Chriscaden, K. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 on people’s livelihoods, their health and our food systems. Retrieved 21 February 2022, from https://www.who.int/news/item/13-10-2020-impact-of-covid-19-on-people’s-livelihoods-their-health-and-our-food-systems
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