Coping with COVID-19 Anxiety and Stress
Mindfulness and Stress Reduction
As we face this challenging time, we can all experience anxiety. Thankfully there are many tools we can use to manage stress more effectively.
- Judson Brewer, MD, PhD, offers various methods to cope with, and even reduce the amount of stress and anxiety we may be dealing with during this time. Visit his Coronavirus Anxiety Daily page to learn more.
- Virgin Pulse Journeys Guide: Tap in to self-guided digital courses to enhance your sleep, reduce your stress levels, bolster healthy eating habits and much more. Check out the Virgin Pulse Journeys Guide.
- Sanvello Stress Reduction App: This free self-management tool can help you manage stress, anxiety, and depression. It includes daily mood tracking, coping tools for specific concerns, and virtual peer support. Learn more about this stress reduction app.
- 10% Happier - Coronavirus Sanity Guide: This web-page includes: guided meditations, podcasts, blog posts, and talks focused on managing coronavirus-related stress and anxiety. View the sanity guide.
- How to Handle Coronavirus Anxiety Podcast: Listen to Dr. Luana Marques of the MGH Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Disorders program with other experts for a 1-hour podcast, sharing practical tips for managing coronavirus anxiety. Listen to the coronavirus anxiety podcast.
- Insight Timer: Browse a free library of over 30,000 recorded meditations for sleep, anxiety, stress, mindfulness, self-compassion, calming music, for kids, etc. Learn more about Insight Timer.
- Fight Stress with the Right Food: Fighting stress with food is a tactic available to everyone. Find out how to arm yourself with 10 stress-busting foods.
- Seek Help When Needed: If anxiety disrupts your daily life for several days or weeks, connect with the confidential HealthAdvocate Employee Assistance Program.
Physical Activity
- Free On-Line Yoga Classes: Engage in some form of movement daily. Yoga is a mind-body practice that combines physical poses, controlled breathing, and meditation or relaxation. Yoga may help reduce stress, lower blood pressure and lower your heart rate.
- Yoga with Adriene: Yoga with Adriene provides high quality practices on yoga and mindfulness at no cost to inspire people of all ages, shapes and sizes.
- YogaWorks: Online yoga classes with a 14-day free trial
- Down Dog App: Free yoga, HIIT and barre classes until July 1, 2020 for health care professionals. Please visit downdogapp.com/healthcare to register your work domain.
- YMCA 360 On-Demand Videos: Regular exercise can help reduce stress and prevent illness. Browse free YMCA Health & Fitness videos.
- Qigong: Qiqong is an ancient practice, born out of traditional Chinese medicine. It is used to quiet the mind, reduce stress and anxiety, and increase quality of sleep. See how you can incorporate this mindful practice.
- Fitness Blender: For a wide variety of FREE professional workouts, including cardio, strength, and stretching videos for every fitness level, check out Fitness Blender.
Preventing Isolation
- Connecting with other people is perhaps even more important during this time of recommended social distancing. Connect with colleagues and boost your mood by creating a Social Group on the Virgin Pulse wellness platform. View the Virgin Pulse Guide to Social Groups and get started today!
- How to Fight the Social Isolation of Coronavirus: View tips to reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness during the outbreak.