Do not leave your home if you have one or more of the following symptoms:
- a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
- a loss of or change to your sense of taste and/or smell
To protect others, do not go to places like a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. Stay at home.
Use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do.
This leaflet gives guidance on self-isolating at home in safety. Please take a look at it and follow the advice if you need to self-isolate.
We have all been facing challenges to our way of life. But there are things we can all do to help ourselves and to feel more positive.
Acknowledge your feelings
When we have difficult feelings, we often try to distract ourselves or distance ourselves from them. But no feeling lasts forever and however strong they feel, feelings don’t hurt us if we don’t act on them. Having an image of something passing can help us sit with our feelings. Name them and let them go; if this is a challenge for you, holding an image of clouds passing across the sky, or leaves floating down a stream, or a wave building and then passing can help. Once you have identified and acknowledged your feeling, you can then move on and focus elsewhere, but if you miss the step of acknowledging the feeling in the first place, you will be using mental energy to try and suppress it, and this is exhausting.
Focus on what you can do, not what you can’t
Dwelling on thoughts of what we can’t do is likely to make us feel frustrated and worse about the current situation. Even changing the language you use to describe the situation to yourself is helpful. If you do think about things you can’t do, add them to a list of future projects and then refocus your attention on something you can do.
Have a basic schedule or routine
Having an idea of what you want to do each day will help you build in some structure to your day, and this is always helpful when we feel stressed or overwhelmed. As well as tasks which give you a sense of achieving something (sorting out a drawer or cupboard, making a bag to donate to the charity shop when we get back to usual, cleaning the house, doing some gardening), add activities which help you feel closer to other people (more about that later), and ones which you enjoy. These can be simple things – things you enjoy looking at, listening to, smelling, tasting or feeling. A fluffy blanket or throw, a nice smell, or a square of chocolate on your tongue will be a pleasant thing to focus on and give you a break from whirring thoughts.
Change your pace
We are used to rushing around and stuffing our schedules full, and it can be tempting to try and distract ourselves from anxious thoughts by keeping this up. Humans were not designed for such frantic activity – anthropologists tell us that our ancestors would have had to spend about 20 hours a week to keep themselves fed and take care of their basic needs, and the rest of their time was theirs to enjoy. This is why stress has become such an epidemic in our modern world – we are in a constant state of overload. Think of shifting down a gear, do one thing at a time rather than multi tasking, or break big chores into smaller ones.
If we do the same thing every day, we can feel quite bored. We can make small changes to our daily routines to shake things up a bit. Sit in a chair you don’t usually sit in or on the floor. Sleep on the other side of the bed. You may discover things about your home or room that you didn’t know before. Similarly, look at different sorts of things online, or watch or listen to different programs to usual, read things you may not automatically expect to like.
While you are thinking about how you connect with others, think about how often you reach out, and what you share. Lots of people feel that if they talk about their feelings and worries, they will be a burden. But the people who care about us want to help us, and the majority of people are happy to talk. So, reach out and be honest with each other. Build in time to talk to people each day. And while you are at it, think about who might appreciate a call from you. We may be hesitating to call others, because we feel we haven’t done anything we can tell them about. But our day to day interactions usually include very small details of our lives, or shared activities, and this is what makes them feel rich and satisfying. So as well as talking about the big issues, share the small details and ask others about the details of their lives. And while you are thinking about support, take advantage of the help out there.
Pay attention to your physical care
It is really important to keep moving around if you are not able to get out and about – maybe going up and down stairs more if you have them, walk around the house if you are on a phone call, or log on to exercise classes. Make it fun – perhaps you might sing and dance along to the radio, or set an alarm to do some push ups every hour. Human bodies are designed for activity, so we need to keep moving. Eat reasonably healthily as much as possible. Don’t worry about what you shouldn’t eat too much, focus on what you need to add in to keep yourself healthy. If you have outside space, try and spend time outside each day. If not, sit by a window, or doorway and get some fresh air if you can do this safely. It might be tempting not to wash or dress, but doing so gives us a chance to care for ourselves and to feel better. Add these things to your daily routine, so instead of waiting to feel like doing them, you do them anyway because they are on your schedule. While you are working on keeping yourself clean and tidy to feel better, think about your environment. There is some evidence that clutter causes and increases our stress levels, so keeping things clean and tidy as much as possible, and making where we are spending time as pleasant as we can makes sense.
Try not to overthink
Limit your access to news sources you trust, and if you feel low or anxious, limit the number of times you check for news each day. If you find your mind going back to worrisome thoughts, try mindfulness apps or sites which can help you refocus your attention in a helpful way. There are lots of websites which offer free ideas about how to do this, and some good apps you can download. This can also help if you find your mind racing when you try to go to sleep.
Do things for other people
Showing kindness and compassion to others can be challenging when we are anxious or low, but helping others helps us feel good about ourselves, as well as making life nicer for everyone. So, think about volunteering if you can, or put a note through the door of a neighbour who is older or ill offering to help, or think about putting books, jigsaws or toys you won’t be using in a box for people to help themselves to, or post the offer of them online.
Remember to reset
If you have a bad day, leave it at that. Tomorrow is a chance to have a better day and try some of the things above. We will all have days which are harder, and that is ok. Be kind to yourself and remember you can always change what you do next.
Mental health support is now available to Derbyshire residents of all ages through our 24-hour mental health support line. Call 0800 028 0077 (this is a freephone number) at any time of day, seven days a week.
A mental health crisis often means that you no longer feel able to cope or be in control of your situation.
You may feel things (although this may be different for individuals) including emotional distress, anxiety, and an inability to cope with day-to-day life or work.
For guidance and support on how to deal with a mental health crisis, visit this dedicated page on our website.
- NHS Health at Home - It's easy to get NHS help using your smartphone, tablet or computer.
- Mental health helplines; whether you're concerned about yourself or a loved one, these helplines and support groups can offer expert advice.
- Public Health England has now released expert advice and top tips on how to look after your mental wellbeing during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. It also includes guidance if you’re feeling worried or anxious about the outbreak.
- NHS mental health app library.
- The Government has produced a useful Coronavirus outbreak FAQs page.
- The WellbeingAndCoping website has been developed by 4 Mental Health and co-funded by NHS England, to offer free calming and practical advice for anyone emotionally struggling during the Coronavirus pandemic.
- The Wellness Society has created a Coronavirus Anxiety Workbook which includes tips and activities to help with anxiety.
- Derbyshire County Council is working closely with the NHS and other local authorities to ensure that the people of Derbyshire are kept well informed. On its website you'll find lots of information around the virus, how to prevent its spread and what to do if you're concerned that you might be at risk.
- Derby City Council has created an Coronavirus information page on its website where you can view health guidance, advice for businesses and the imapct on council services and facilities.
- Tailored and expert support (including over the phone and internet) is available within Derby and Derbyshire for individuals at this time. In order to find the right support please see below:
- Derbyshire Bereavement Hub has created a list of local services for people in Derbyshire who have been bereaved and need some support.
- The UK Government has also created a bereavement leaflet which helps bereaved families make important decisions.
- Information on supporting bereaved children during the outbreak of COVID-19.
- Domestic abuse - where to get help during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is now also a freephone, 24-hour national domestic abuse helpline for victims of domestic abuse. The helpline, which is run by the charity Refuge, can be contacted on 0808 2000 247.
At the same time, a national campaign called You Are Not Alone has been launched
- We recognise that this is a very stressful time and that you may have concerns about your safety, or the safety of someone else. Derbyshire County Council has put together a list of resources to help you keep yourself and others safe.
- Derbyshire Mental Health Forum has created a very useful list of local mental health support services.