Life with post-pandemic stress syndrome aka PPSD
One thing is certain – the world around us is no longer the same as it was three years ago. The corona pandemic has made corrections in everything that we considered normal as a society until now. Against the war in Ukraine, Covid19 seems like a secondary issue, but for many of us, the fear and hecticness of the last few years have left a lasting mark. Even though it is no longer on the front pages of the news, the Covid topic is still at the forefront of our thoughts and behavior. According to WHO (World Health Organization), PPSD (post-pandemic stress disorder) affects the collective health of society very strongly.
The effect of Covid-time on mental health
We talk about corona primarily as a disease of the physical body. We know that as a result of suffering from corona, the body recovers and antibodies are produced to protect the body. But what about mental health?
A 2020 study found that 40.9% of respondents experienced changes in their usual mental health due to the pandemic situation – for 30.9% this meant adjusting to anxiety or depression, for 26.3% trauma or stress-related symptoms, and 13.3 % observed an exacerbation of addictive behavior to cope with emotions due to Covid.
Symptoms of PPSD, or symptoms resulting from pandemic trauma, manifest differently from person to person, but the most common of them are the following:
🔸 Feeling of meaninglessness;
🔸 Decreased motivation;
🔸 Feeling of helplessness;
🔸 Disturbed sleep rhythm;
🔸 Changes in eating habits;
🔸 Feeling of emptiness and apathy;
🔸 Negative and catastrophic thinking;
🔸 Social withdrawal;
🔸 Coping difficulties in creating a daily routine;
🔸 Fear of returning to “normal life”.
Gradually, society opens up to regular traditions and the rhythm of life seems to be returning to normality, but the post-traumatic stress state does not allow the elevated feeling of anxiety to subside. Neurological studies explain that stress causes disorders in the functioning of brain cells and paralyzes the brain’s ability to grasp and process information, causing a feeling of pressure even in the smallest tasks. However, this makes it difficult to return to “normal life”.
If PTSD seems like a familiar condition that you are also experiencing in your life, know that it is a normal post-traumatic reaction, and by treating it correctly, you can tune yourself into a relaxation wave instead of a stressful Covid wave.
You can’t control the pandemic, only your reaction to it
PTSD is a collective ordeal that must be endured just like the coronavirus – only not in isolation, but with each other’s support. The 2+2 period is over and it’s time to come together again, dare to ask for help and share it with those who are struggling. There are therapists who specialize only in trauma psychology and whose help can speed up the return to a normal and fulfilling life rhythm many times over.
CBD is also a support system that, together with therapy, favors the recovery of the body on both a mental and physical level. A 2020 CNN article discusses the positive properties of CBD in correcting anxiety, sleep, and mood, helping boost immunity in healthcare workers by restoring normal sleep rhythms, and preventing the development of addictions as a defense mechanism for anxiety. The CBD endocannabinoid system works similarly to the immune system, finding the source of the imbalanced problem in the body and “repairing” it with the body’s own resources. This is in contrast to drugs what’s function is to relieve one specific symptom, which can be very difficult to define in the case of PPSD.
Mental health cannot be separated from physical health, which means that CBD can be helpful also in case of physical deficiencies caused by a long period in the home office – for example, joint and weight problems.
Read more about cannabinoids and mental health here and choose to live a healthy life also in our head!
