Dr Brendan Kelly Coping with Coronavirus: How to Stay Calm and Protect your Mental Health
A Psychological Toolkit
by Dr Brendan Kelly (Irish Academic Press, €3.99 pb; Kindle price, €0.99)
Anthony Redmond
I am sure I speak for a lot of people when I say that I feel as if I am living through a strange, bizarre nightmare when I contemplate what has happened over the past few months with the arrival of the coronavirus in our world. It has shaken all my certainties and everything I took for granted in my life.
Very few people alive today have ever known anything quite like it and, in many cases, we are gripped by fear and anxiety and total confusion about the future. Of course, when this all started some months ago, I met people who told me not to be worried, that it was no worse than the common cold or possibly the flu. They seemed quite blasé and unconcerned.
I don’t think that there are too many who feel like that now. Reality has set in.
Dr Brendan Kelly is Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin and Consultant Psychiatrist at Tallaght University Hospital. He has produced a timely and wonderful book offering us advice on how to stay calm and maintain a sense of proportion and rationality at this troubling time. He writes with compassion, wisdom, concern and a sense of reason and proportion.
He tells us to stay informed about Covid-19, but not to become completely obsessed with it. He asks us not to fall into unhelpful thinking habits. He warns us not to fill in knowledge gaps with speculation or random musings on social media. God knows, there are numerous conspiracy theories and myths about and some of them quite hair-raising.
This book offers us practical advice on what to do if we think we might have the virus.
The author suggests that we spend no more than 15 minutes twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, consuming news on the subject from reliable sources like the WHO.
One is struck by the sheer goodness of people”
We are also advised to have a healthy diet, good sleep, exercise and to find an interesting activity that absorbs us. He writes: “The urgency of the current pandemic underlines these needs to focus on reality, focus on compassion and focus on each other.”
He continues: “Above all, we must keep going. At a time like this, we cannot let the problems of today blind us to the possibilities of tomorrow. Small actions hold the key. In that spirit, if you have been reading this book on a computer, tablet or smartphone, please wipe down your device and wash your hands with care. Simple actions save lives.”
I was about 20 years old when I read The Plague [La Peste] by Albert Camus and I recall the profound impression it made on me. Camus’ powerful novel appeared in 1947 and it was set in the Algerian city of Oran.
Camus described the disbelief and indifference of the people there when first they heard about the plague. He goes on to describe in detail the terrible consequences that followed and the different reactions of different people. The plague finally ends and hope and peace are restored.
The main character in the book, Dr Bernard Rieux, says: “There is more to admire in man than to despise.” I think of those words when I see the truly extraordinary courage, unselfishness and self-sacrifice of those amazing people on the frontline helping others, nurses, doctors, care workers in nursing homes, ambulance staff and many more.
God bless them. No words can adequately praise their heroism and dedication. The world will never forget them. I think of all those kind and caring people who are raising money to help the care workers and to buy medical equipment for them.
A 99-year-old British World War II veteran, Captain Tom Moore, walked 100 laps of his 25m garden with the help of a walking frame and he raised €31m for health workers.
An eight-year-old boy from Co. Galway, Dylan Moran, took part in a 42km cycle marathon while staying within his two kilometre permitted radius to raise money for healthcare staff. A number of very brave people have agreed to be injected as part of human trials in Britain for a coronavirus vaccine.
Researchers from the University of Oxford administered the doses to volunteers. The Imperial College London is hoping to have a vaccine by the end of the year.
One is constantly struck by the sheer goodness of people. This terrible time has made us seriously reflect on life and examine our values. It will give us a new appreciation of life and our loved ones.
****
My wonderful sister, Mary, who has underlying health issues, has kept me company during the isolation, and my good friend, Luca, has brought me groceries every week.
When this worrying time is over, there will be awful grief and deep sadness for those who have died and we shall celebrate their lives and have a chance to try to console their loved ones. This isn’t something we can simply bounce back from.
I also think that it is vitally important that existing medical problems should be dealt with. Other serious health issues cannot be ignored, but I fear that this is happening at the moment. Those who are ill from other health conditions cannot be ignored.
Another thing that strikes me as ridiculous is the fact that people can come from Northern Ireland here on a day trip or go to their holiday home and there are no restrictions on this, but we in the Republic may only walk a maximum of five kilometres from our home. Utterly crazy!
I would highly recommend Dr Kelly’s helpful book which helps us to deal with panic and anxiety. He says: “This book is dedicated to all who are affected by coronavirus and all who care for them. Royalties from the sale of this book will be donated to medical charities assisting with the global response to coronavirus.”
We desperately need to avoid despair and a sense of nihilism and helplessness. It is important to keep hope and positivity alive. With God’s help we shall smile and experience joy, freedom and peace again.