Power of fear in face of Covid-19

Are you scared, worried, anxious and overwhelmed? Well, fear is an emotion. Everyone gets scared and fear is an unavoidable facet of human experience.

From our televisions, social media, newspapers and radios, to our political conversations, we are inundated with messages of fear. Fear is killing us before Covid-19 does and we must take care of this fact because it is real.

The night when the Ministry of Health confirmed that Uganda had eight cases of Covid-19 after the first case, I developed all the symptoms of Covid-19.
I developed flu, headache and had swollen lymph nodes.

Being a health worker, the previous day my workmate had come in contact with someone who asked whether we test Covid-19 in our facility and so all this was running in my mind. The next day, the first thing on my agenda was to take temperature measurement.

Since I had access to the N-95 masks in the laboratory at my workplace, I picked one and swiftly headed for my temperature reading.

To my relief, my temperature was just normal, too normal to cause any alarm. I went back to my work station, took a deep breath and told myself not to worry.

I focused my thoughts on work and the positive things around me and slowly, my thoughts drifted away from the monster Covid-19 that was attacking my thoughts before it attacked my body.

Before I could realise, I had risen above my fears and the signs and symptoms of Covid-19 had miraculously left. I promised to adhere to the preventive guidelines already highlighted by the Health ministry.

Later through my observations and interactions, I realised that I had not been alone in this illusion. I had been paranoid. Then I wondered what those in the institutional and self quarantine were going through.

I imagined what the relatives, friends and contacts of those in the institutional and self quarantine and those that had tested positive for Covid-19 were going through? It must be terrible!

When all is said and done, all these people require the help of a psycho-social counsellor or a mental health worker. In these turbulent times of Covid-19, fear is justifiable and to some extent, we can thank fear for some our successes.

It gives us the survival instincts that we need to keep safe from danger. Fear makes us take all the precautions and preventative measures so as not to catch the deadly disease. But when we over worry, it impacts on the overall wellbeing.

Fear has an impact on physical health; it weakens our immune system and can cause cardiovascular damage, decreased fertility and gastrointestinal problems such as ulcers and irritable bowel syndrome.

It can lead to accelerated ageing, increase in blood pressure, fatigue, insomnia, loss of libido rapid shallow breathing, heart palpitations, headache, chest pain and so on. It can eventually lead to premature death.

There is need for social support and calm among those affected, their relatives, contacts, friends and the general public to overcome this fear: There are several ways we can use to fight fear. Let us try to change our lifestyle first. Simple changes like exercising regularly can reduce your stress levels.

So can eating healthy meals, getting enough sleep, and reducing or avoiding stimulants like caffeine and alcohol.

Amid this, let us be positive thinkers with a positive attitude. Let us not be preoccupied with signs and symptoms of Covid-19. The habit of constantly speaking and thinking with strong feelings about the disease often creates the same symptoms of the same illness in your life.

For those already confirmed to have Covid-19, there is need to concentrate on living than dying. Fear is simply a state of the mind.

Emily Ninsiima,
[email protected]