Vanesa Rescalvo: "The emotional impact of COVID has been significant"

The COVID-19 crisis has brought about a radical change in the lives of many people, and a good part of the ability to face the challenges of the pandemic months has to do not with the strategy and management of material resources, but with emotional management.

However, this is not always easy, and not knowing how to handle emotions gives rise to added problems. Therefore, it becomes essential to develop the psychological skills related to this.

The psychologist Vanesa Rescalvo has been helping people with this kind of problem for a long time, and in this interview she talks to us about what must be taken into account to face the emotional impact of the pandemic months.

• Related article: "Emotional management: 10 keys to master your emotions"

Interview with Vanesa Rescalvo: the keys to emotional management in the face of COVID-19

Vanesa Rescalvo is a general health psychologist and co-director of Atlas Psicólogos, a psychotherapy center located in Tres Cantos. In this interview we talk with her about managing emotions in the face of the coronavirus crisis.

To what extent has the COVID-19 crisis had an impact on the emotional health of the population?

The emotional impact has been significant. In these months working with my patients, I have observed that COVID has affected various areas: in this situation we have all developed a certain fear of this virus, which in the most intense cases, leads to someone being very upset when leaving on the street; On the other hand, a very present symptom in the majority of the population is the feeling of exhaustion, of needing this situation to end now in order to return to their usual life.

Today we all have less access to our daily reinforcers (meetings, activities, trips, among others), so it is normal for this exhaustion to occur. Fewer activities to recharge and more demands on the environment leads to people feeling more psychologically tired

Do you tend to assume that emotional problems that arise in times of crisis are something you have to deal with yourself without seeking professional help?

Somehow, all of us tend to try to solve many situations ourselves, and leave the intervention of a professional until the end.

The problem with this approach is that one's own perspective is often insufficient to resolve a demanding situation, and During the time that work is not done to solve this problem, two things are happening: on the one hand, enduring discomfort disgusting; on the other hand, the problem is aggravated.

In times of crisis is when the intervention of an expert on the subject is most necessary, since it is when it is most difficult to handle the situation.

What are the dynamics of coexistence with the family or with the couple that can be seen more worn out by the pandemic situation?

Before we had a greater variety of activities and reinforcers, so almost any coexistence situation can be affected. It is easy for us to be more irritable and this leads us to argue over small things like not having put the dishwasher on or having some mess.

Perhaps an important point is that the more discouraged people are, the more we tend to focus on ourselves and our suffering, which can cause problems when it comes to empathizing with others and having more inconsiderate behaviors towards they.

And in the professional field, what psychological impact has the coronavirus crisis had?

As I said in one of the previous questions, the main effects that I have noticed in my practice are fear of contracting the disease and exhaustion for the duration of the situation.

These two factors, sometimes, end up leading to anxiety in the face of the perception of danger and sadness for feeling that time and life are wasting.

I have also noticed that this psychological fatigue has caused some people to be a little more lazy to start a process therapeutic, which is reasonable as long as a person feels worn out, but paradoxically it makes it easier for the problem to keep up. It is a difficult and demanding situation, so it is important to understand both ourselves and others.

What are the techniques and forms of intervention that are most useful in therapy to help people suffering from pandemic anxiety?

Precisely because this is a demanding situation, unknown to the vast majority of the Western population, it is important that we do not impose more demands on ourselves.

Something I often tell my patients is that this is not the time to force yourself to learn English, take photography courses, or anything else.

If a person feels like doing it and has a personal motivation to do it, go ahead! Enjoy it! But if it is a self-imposition to try to take advantage of time, the normal thing is that, in addition to not reaching that objective, one ends up feeling more frustrated.

That is why the main recommendation we make in our clinic is to reduce the level of self-demand. Continuing to have goals is interesting, it mobilizes the person and gives them happiness, but without a feeling of obligation in the process.

In addition, guidelines for learning to manage emotions are usually very useful at this time.

Beyond psychotherapy, what habits and routines can people follow to prevent anxiety problems or put them at bay?

Continuing with the above, just as the obligation can be too demanding at the moment (and not only in this situation), the voluntary nature allows a very valuable recharge of energies.

Point number one, in my opinion, would be to do whatever you want. To that activity that is motivating in itself, you can apply a routine that facilitates its practice. For example, establish a schedule, analyze what difficulties may prevent its implementation, consider what resources you have to start it.