Boosting resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic

Only a few months ago, many were talking about our hectic, frenetic, fast-paced and overly stressful lifestyle. Enter COVID-19 and suddenly our stress levels have skyrocketed to unprecedented levels as we are forced to respond and adjust to the current reality.

Life as we know it has changed and we are now grappling with social distancing, working from home, isolation, fear and uncertainty. However, just like any crisis, there are things we can do to keep physically and emotionally healthy to help us weather the storm during these challenging times.

Let us begin by understanding what goes on in our brain during high-threat situations. All human beings have what is called an ‘evolutionary negativity bias’. This is a self-preservation mechanism in the brain that keeps us alert and vigilant for potential danger. It is what kept us on the constant lookout for predators thousands of years ago and is still functional today.

When we perceive any form of threat, be it psychological or physiological, a small cluster of neurons in our brain, called the amygdala, fires up and activates the well-known ‘fight or flight’ response. This is the classical primitive stress response that is...