Worry, Depression, Anxiety Immunity Matters during Pandemic COVID 19
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Immunity Matters
The conversation around immunity is a big one right now. You’ve probably heard endless discussions related to herd immunity, vaccines, immune boosts, and all sorts. The coronavirus has re-opened the conversation about immunity.
It has also re-opened the conversation about mental health, or more to the point – worry, depression, and anxiety. With the global community in the same boat, fighting the same virus, and many people under pressure to balance work (whether from home or otherwise), homeschool children, and stay safe, we are all feeling the impact of worry, depression, and anxiety. Here’s the thing… with a spike in all of this stress your immune system is working harder than normal.
When your immunity is low you are more susceptible to every illness going around and that includes COVID-19. Therefore, it is of vital importance to you to first understand how worry, depression, and anxiety impact your immunity and more importantly, you know what you can do about it.
Worry, Depression, Anxiety Immunity Matters during Pandemic COVID 19
Your immunity is closely linked to stress, which includes worry, depression, and anxiety as they all feed off of each other. The big question is why?
Your immune system has one big job – it serves as the body’s first line of defense against viruses, bacteria, germs, etc. Your health depends on it. Your immune system is perched, waiting for health invaders to appear in order to attack them as swiftly and efficiently as possible to ensure they will not damage your health.
What the coronavirus has done positively, is highlight the need for hygiene. It has made everyone more mindful of how often they touch their face and how often they pick up objects that others touch. The cold virus can live on coffee mugs, pens, computers, and a wide range of objects for hours!
The flu virus can linger on money for weeks! So, think about how dangerous an office is to someone with flagging immunity? That’s why it’s important to use hand sanitizer, that’s why you should wash your hands as frequently as possible. As great as your hygiene is, though, if you’re under stress, trying to cope with worry, anxiety, or depression, then you are fighting a losing battle.
Worry, anxiety, and depression alone are not enough to catch every virus or cold passing through. However, as they all weaken immunity, your body struggles to deal with the invasion, which leaves you even more vulnerable to illness and infection.
There’s also the problem that recovery can be slowed by worry, anxiety, and depression. Your immune system is busy dealing with the stress your body is under and can’t send resources to deal with the new invasion. Your body is essentially at war with itself and you’re the fall-guy.
In a perfect world, once the threat passes, cortisol and adrenaline levels drop, your heart rate returns to baseline, your blood pressure normalizes, and everything goes back to normal.
Your stress response system is self-limiting, or at least it should be. When anxiety, depression, or worry are present? You are constantly being plunged into fight or flight. The reaction remains in the on position and your body is getting bathed in stress hormones. How does your immune system cope? It can’t. It is unable to respond as it should and instead it inflames, leading to other health issues related to inflammation.
There’s another big issue when you’re dealing with anxiety, depression, and worry. Your coping strategies. How do you respond to stress? Do you eat your emotions? Do you drink more alcohol? Do you smoke more cigarettes (or pick up a long-forgotten smoking habit)? Do you live on caffeine and junk food, just trying to get through?
We are all guilty of resorting to the most unhealthy coping strategies available to us because those strategies provide us with instant relief. Unfortunately, they complicate issues long-term. Not only can they contribute to ill health and other lifestyle diseases, but it makes the initial problem even worse!
Tonight, that third glass of Malbec might have helped you forgot that presentation next week, but tomorrow morning you still have a presentation on your hands.
Stress feeds worry, anxiety, and depression, worry, anxiety, and depression feed stress. It’s difficult to break free from a vicious cycle that feeds the way it does. Studies have shown that stress wreaks havoc on immunity
Disclaimer: for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Medical advice should always be obtained from a qualified medical professional for any health conditions or symptoms associated with them. Every possible effort has been made in preparing and researching this material. We make no warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability of its contents or any omissions.
