Over my (very long) life to date I’ve had lots of ups and downs. The downs have been bad – I’ve had several bouts of depression, where life almost became too much and I was living in a long, dark tunnel. A combination of a caring doctor, drug treatment, the support of Himself and the unconditional love of my dogs got me through each time, thank goodness.
So, I welcome Mental Health Awareness week this week. A fifth of the population have mental health problems. But it truly is a hidden disease. I felt I was alone in a scary, black place. Few people knew, because I was very good at acting the part at work and when meeting non-family. I’m generally OK now but there’s always that dark, formless mass lurking in the corner of my mind waiting to spring out again.
A Lancet review of 24 studies looking at the effects of quarantine published in February this year showed that people who are quarantined are very likely to develop a wide range of symptoms of psychological stress and disorder, including low mood, insomnia, stress, anxiety, anger, irritability, emotional exhaustion, depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Low mood and irritability specifically stood out as being very common.
Studies following SARS and MERS quarantine show various long-term effects too – higher risks of alcohol abuse, self-medication and long-lasting “avoidance” behaviour, which can lead to absenteeism and even phobias about leaving home.
With nearly 3 billion people around the world in lockdown or quarantine, the world is currently experiencing arguably the biggest psychological experiment ever.
Psychologists have identified three stages of lockdown:
1. Panic
2. Acceptance
3. Anxiety/stress about restrictions being eased and what happens now.
We’re in stage 3 now. It’s tough for everyone at the moment. Perhaps it should be Mental Health Awareness Year…
Thankfully, our dogs are helping us a lot at the moment. Petting dogs, and even merely maintaining eye contact with them, helps buffer your stress levels. Because you’re very limited in what social contact you can have at present, dogs can fill that social support gap making you feel less isolated and alone.
Even better, you can talk to your dog and moan about how you feel without any fear of comeback or criticism – your dog agrees with everything you say.
When you’re stressed and tense, you change how you interact with your dog. Perhaps like me, you want far more interaction with your pet and you’re giving your dog lots more attention. The dopamine surge that doggy cuddles produce makes you feel calmer, more relaxed and helps you sleep better.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that you derive a variety of benefits from walking your dogs. Dog walking encourages physical activity and getting outside with your dog increases the opportunities to see, wave at and say hello to neighbours and other walkers and cyclists (from an acceptable social distance), providing yet more ways to feel good.
I’ve talked before about this and also about the negative impact lockdown is having on our dogs too – many dogs are developing mental health problems such as separation anxiety.
I recommended three things you should do now to help your dog avoid separation distress as you get back to a more normal life.
Dogs have helped us so much recently, we should do what we can to help our dogs too.
I’m off to cuddle Gus now.
Keep safe and keep training
Carol