By Shaili Jain, Mind Body Green, March 23, 2020
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, people everywhere are adjusting to a new normal. As we're all experiencing, the stress of these adjustments certainly differ from our regular day-to-day stress. And for those living with trauma, there's a very real possibility their symptoms could get worse under the current circumstances.
With standard ways to cope unavailable (like going to the gym, meeting up with friends, or going to a concert) this can be a very difficult time, indeed. Many mental health conditions can be exacerbated by stressors, and in the case of traumatic stress, environmental cues can be triggering. Watching news coverage of the pandemic, for example, could be very overwhelming for a trauma survivor.
These feelings can further trigger a sense of helplessness, powerlessness, fear and anxiety—all feelings they experienced during their original traumas, which may worsen trauma symptoms. That can look like worsening nightmares, more intrusive thoughts or flashbacks, angry or irritable moods, and distrust towards people. Thankfully there are many ways we can prevent this from happening...
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