We are living in exceptional times, the country and the world are at a standstill. Non-primary companies are closing down, making redundancies. Entrepreneurs are terrified, markets are collapsing. We recently experienced another deep crisis and we still haven't recovered, that crisis has already traumatised us as a society. This crisis seems even more serious, as it affects us personally and individually, and panic paralyses us at all levels.
We have to take into account that we are imprisoned, with our personal belongings, but locked up after all. And part of our family may even be in another country, and even if they are in this one, we cannot see each other. This crisis has also taken away the comfort of the embrace of loved ones, the closeness.
This confinement that we are living through, and which is sure to continue, as we have already been told, is causing us various psychological symptoms that will worsen if we do not know how to manage and understand them.
I will try to describe some of the symptoms we are experiencing on a personal level, to see what we can do to combat them, and then I will try to do it on a business level.
Firstly, the feeling of lack of control. We are facing an enemy we do not know, we do not know when it might attack us, our loved ones are in danger, we do not know if we are infected, some people have already lost close relatives. Our ancestors did not understand what happened when it thundered, they lived in a constant vigilance of their surroundings, on which their lives depended. In a way, we live again that situation of alertness that we carry in our genes, but we cannot run away to avoid it, so somatisation or cumulative behaviours are produced (toilet paper disappears from supermarkets).
This uncertainty produces tremendous anxiety, as well as a feeling of fragility. In addition to the fear of getting sick ourselves, there is the fear of infecting our loved ones. Social avoidance and occasionally rejection behaviours are observed, with the added anxiety that this produces.
Some people describe a certain sense of apathyThey do not feel like doing anything, usually preceded by a feeling of helplessness.
Apathy is the gateway to depression, we have to be very vigilant with this symptom and force ourselves to keep trying to maintain a daily routine. Later I will give some tips on how to combat these symptoms.
It creates a sense of dehumanisation and lack of freedomWe need to move, like all animals, and now we are restricted. Our identity is not only constructed by our particular experiences but also in social relations. Let us remember that man is a social "animal" and that he has evolved throughout history precisely because of social interaction and teamwork with their fellow human beings. And we are limited in that too. Our identity is a fundamental part of ourselves and is built on what we do and how we spend our time.
If we confine an animal in the wild, after a while it will have certain symptoms, as a manifestation of some kind of psychosomatic disorder; for example, if it is a dog, its hair will fall out, etc.
The psychosomatic disorders are those in which the emotions go directly to the body, without going through the mind to process them. It's like when you get upset and catch a cold. The more we are able to be aware of our emotions, the less they will pass into the body.
If we don't move we will become constipated and lose muscle, we will sleep poorly as we abandon healthy habits.
Throughout these days, we will all have moments of anxiety, frustration, helplessness and moodiness, but by being aware of how we feel, managing these emotions can be made easier.
It will be easy for sparks to arise with the people we live with, it will be advisable to prevent fires from breaking out.
With a series of control measuresIn this way, we will be able to mitigate the consequences of this unwanted confinement:
- Order and disciplineGet up at the same time, keep a schedule of activities throughout the day. This schedule should include both physical and mental exercise.
- Physical exerciseWe should do an hour of exercise every day, including aerobic movement, twice a day, for example, or for a short time every hour or so. Physical exercise increases cerebral and joint irrigation, improves mood through the production of dopamine and serotonin.
- Mental exerciseLearning provides protection for our emotional barrier against adversity. It motivates us, a human being without goals, without challenges becomes depressed. Take advantage of this moment to learn what motivates you, something new and challenging. Reading novels that escape from reality can also help, without falling into the ease of television.
- Significant relationshipsTake advantage of the time we now have to call family and friends. Get back in touch with those friends you haven't called for a long time and who have given you so much in their time.
- Humouris the most powerful tool that exists to raise our spirits. Trying to keep it up is fundamental at this time of year and being Spanish, it is in our blood.
- Feelings of communityThe idea of clapping on the balcony helps us to feel part of a community, we support each other.
- Altruism and gratitudeThank the health professionals, the military, the farmers, all those people who are working to take care of us. Helping, doing some altruistic activity, simply thinking that our isolation benefits the community. Both produce an automatic well-being, experienced as a reward.
- Thought stop: When we start to feel negative emotions or catastrophic thoughts, think "Enough is enough". Think of happy memories, situations that made us laugh, remember what we do have instead of what we don't have. Avoid watching too much of the increasingly discouraging news.
Viktor Frankl wrote: "when all goals have been uprooted, all that remains is the last of human freedoms: the ability to choose one's attitude to a set of circumstances.".
At company level. The company is an enlarged self with a great deal of complexity, a union of many individualities and a common roof. And with different characteristics in each sector, which we will have to investigate together.
Firstly, by not seeing each other in the office, being together, the danger of disconnection is great. By disconnection I mean lack of attachment, lack of coordination or teamwork, feeling of loneliness, isolation. In terms of attachment, we are mammals, no matter how effective communication techniques are. on-line, humans need contact, proximity. There is a classic experiment by Harlow in which the monkeys preferred to cuddle up to a structure with fur rather than a structure without fur that only provided them with food. As a wise Spanish saying goes: el roce hace el cariño (touch makes love).
If in most companies there is often a lack of group cohesion, remote working usually complicates this even more.
Secondly, the company's workers may suffer the effects of confinement, and if those effects include fear, uncertainty, it can lead to depression, and operability will undoubtedly be affected.
Business uncertainty further increases anxiety and panic, so that creativity is nullified. Creativity is what gives us the ability to find ways out of difficult situations. If companies remain paralysed, in panic mode, they lose the ability to react, they are left in stand-by. Or the counterpart of paralysis which is the tempest of movements.
Therefore, in these uncertain times, transmitting closeness and security to the customer will be essential for companies. Human beings need certainty, even more so in these times. A good communication plan that conveys an image of solidity and closeness.
Making video calls in which you can see our face, calling our clients to take an interest in their health and that of their relatives, will increase their loyalty and strengthen their links with us and our company.
Ana Heras Piedrabuena
HR consultant and trainer of Proa Comunicación