It is quite normal to feel anxious and scared. Especially during times of uncertainty like now. Chances are that most people around you are feeling exactly the same way. The real challenge, when we are all feeling this way, becomes that it is so easy to infect others with this anxiety and fear. It is so easy to transfer our negative feelings to other people, and for other people to transfer their negative feelings to us.
What we need to do is to protect ourselves against these emotional contagions. There are lots of ways to do this, as long as we remain aware of our surroundings and make conscious decisions. We need to cut down on consuming information that feeds our anxiety and fear. We need to stop feasting on negative social media content. We need to stop watching the news all day long. At a time like this, it is critical that we learn to distinguish between speculative information and real information.
And most importantly, we need to stop those negative conversations with friends and colleagues. Refuse to be drawn into these. Absolutely refuse to!
Taking care of your mental health is critical right now, and this means that you also need to take care of your physical health. If you are not feeding your body, it will not have the nutrients to cope with the additional emotional stress. If you are not exercising, your body will not be releasing the correct chemicals to keep your emotions balanced.
It is ok to feel anxious. It is ok to feel fearful. But it is not ok to allow these emotions to consume you. Acknowledge them, because they are real, and then move on. Build your own resilience. Nurture your own positivity. Seek out quality connections with other positive people and share that positivity with everyone you come into contact with.
Pass the positivity along.