City officials, politicians, and students are advocating for mental health in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a press conference on March 29, Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg said “It’s ok to not feel ok about the COVID-19 and about things like social distancing, self-isolation and the pandemic in general.” Pegg said that feelings of anxiety are “normal and healthy responses” to the whole situation.
Ryan Maman, a third year animation student at Sheridan College said that the COVID-19 pandemic gives him “lots of anxiety,” that harms his mental health.
“I was trying not to give in to the panic,” Maman said. “But it’s hard when you already have anxiety going into it.”
Sophie Rubino, a third year visual arts and concurrent education student at York University said she suffers from anxiety, and that she “feels isolated in a bad way.”
Rubino said she understands that social distancing is necessary, but she is “definitely anxious.”
“My mom is diabetic, my dad has high blood pressure, my sister has had pneumonia three times, and my grandmother lives with us. We’re pretty much all at risk,” Rubino said.
Rubino said she feels that she could only do so much herself, and that a lot of her anxiety is about other people. “There are so many people that aren’t taking the necessary precautions to keep themselves and others safe,” she said.
Rubino said that she has a hard time watching TV or reading the news now. “It’s like 10 people dead in this country, 100 infected in this country. It’s nonstop. To be watching and hearing so much bad news really puts me in a bad headspace,” she said.
Maman echoed her worries and said that he’s constantly on social media, reading about the “huge numbers.”
“It worries me a lot now,” he said. “I need to get out and go to different places to keep busy, so I don’t know how I’m gonna deal with that.”
Neal Solomon is a social worker and therapist who will be providing therapy for the Ontario Provincial Police during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that actively engaging with social activity is “extremely important to maintain mental health.”
Solomon said that social distancing can be detrimental to mental health. “The more isolated, the more cut off, the more likely for enhanced issues to appear.”
“If you have current sadness, depression and anxiety, being cut off can really increase those problems,” he said.
Solomon said that during this pandemic, “the need will grow for therapy.”
To help those suffering from mental illness, Solomon suggested to stay in contact with friends.
Solomon said that in order to maintain a good headspace, people should “try to make life as ordinary as possible in such extraordinary conditions.”
Maman said that his main way of coping is by keeping busy. “I’m trying to read more, explore different hobbies, watch new shows, and generally trying not to get in my own head.”
“It also helps knowing that we’re all in the same situation,” he said. “A big part of mental health is feeling alone. There’s comfort in knowing that everyone’s going through the same thing.”
“I cleaned my room the other day.” Rubino said. “For a while, I was feeling really depressed and I was letting my room get really messy. That was a physical representation of how I was feeling.”
Rubino said that she copes by leaving the window open in her bedroom. “It feels good to have the sun on my face,” she said. “The breeze helps me get through the day so much.”
On March 29, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a press conference that the federal government pledged $7.5 million in funds to Kids Help Phone “to provide mental health support to children and youth impacted by school closures and reduced access to social support and community resources.”