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Dealing with Depression During the Lockdown

February 26, 2021

The coronavirus crisis is affecting all aspects of our life. Lockdown restrictions that keep us indoors, away from our loved ones and regular daily activities, have had an impact on the mental health of many people. 

This extended period of isolation is particularly difficult for those suffering from depression. It can be tough to deal with the additional stress and feelings of anxiety that being alone and confined to a single space can trigger. It is important not to let yourself get consumed by the uncertainty and negative news that is probably making it harder for you to disengage.

If you are unsure if your symptoms could be related to depression, take our online depression test here before getting in touch with us. 

Here are a few coping mechanisms you could try, when dealing with increased anxiety and stress levels or low moods.

1. Maintain As Normal A Routine As Possible

While it is true that there are limitations to where you can go and who you can visit during the lockdown, try as much as possible to incorporate regular daily activities in your routine. Start your day at the same time, follow an exercise plan, stick to your work schedule, and follow your daily household routine. It is easy to get lazy and be more lethargic when spending more time at home, but the idler you are, the stronger your negative thoughts will get. By keeping yourself busy, engaged, and following a good routine, you can keep those negative thoughts at bay.

2. Connect with your friends and family

While you are spending extended periods at home, it is important to maintain contact with the people that are important to you. Set up regular video calls with family and remember to call your friends. Speaking to someone regularly and having a face-to-face conversation, although virtual, will help you to focus on positive emotions.

3. Learn a new skill or focus on a hobby

If there is one thing we’ve all got more of during the lockdown, it is time. Use this time productively to learn something new. If there is something that you’ve always wanted to do but were too busy for, now is the time to focus on it. It can be a simple online class, painting, or baking cookies. Channel your energy into developing a new skill will keep you motivated and positive. Here is a great list of hobbies that you can learn at home during the lockdown, ranging from stitching to online yoga classes.

4. Stay organized

Set aside time every day to clean your house and tidy your work area. Make sure you create clear boundaries between work zones and home zones. Working in a well-organised space will help you to stay focused and better manage your time. Avoid working from the couch or bed, as it will only blur the lines between your personal and professional time, causing you to drag your work time way beyond what is required. Check out these easy tips for keeping your house organized and clutter-free.

5. Stay fit

Try to squeeze in an outdoor exercise like a run or a jog to get some fresh air as well as mood-boosting Vitamin D to free your mind from any negative thoughts. If you wish to stay indoors, don’t skip out on your workout routine. Try a new at-home workout video or create a fitness competition group on an app with your friends to motivate yourself. Check out this useful list of at-home exercise ideas.

6. Eat Healthily

Make sure to include a good mix of nutritious food in your daily diet. Clean eating will keep your body healthy and energised.

7. Log-off 

Take a breather from the news. Switch off from social media. Make sure you regularly take a break from the non-stop onslaught of negative news which does nothing but add to further your anxiety levels.

If You Are Struggling With Depression During Lockdown, Reach Out To A Mental Care Professional.

If you find yourself dwelling over negative thoughts or experiencing persistent stress and anxiety, reach out to a mental health professional. Psymplicity’s caring and experienced psychiatrists specialise in the assessment and treatment of depression. Take our depression test to see if you could benefit from professional support, or view our Online Therapy and Psychiatry Services.

Author: Jeremy Beider

How To Help Children Cope With Autism (ASD) Assessments

August 13, 2020

If you are considering an autism assessment for your child, you may be concerned about helping them to cope with the assessment itself. The good news is that through careful preparation and consistent encouragement you can greatly enhance your child’s ability to manage the assessment process and ensure that useful insights and recommendations are gained.

If your child has been displaying symptoms that are in line with the autism spectrum, for example on this online children’s autism test, getting a detailed assessment and diagnosis can help you understand the severity of the condition and plan for the next steps in terms of obtaining the right care and support for them and the whole family.

Before beginning the process of autism assessment, it is essential for you to understand the potential difficulties and challenges your child may face when completing required tasks or attending interviews so that you can support them in having a positive experience.

Understanding The Child Autism Assessment Process

The autism spectrum is complex and symptoms cannot be determined by your child completing a single, straightforward test. For this reason, child autism assessments typically involve a series of evaluations and tests performed by multidisciplinary teams or specialists during 2-3 appointments.

Most assessments involve direct interactions between the mental health professional and your child, typically structured in the form of play-based assessment procedures referred to as an Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). Some assessments may require your child to complete cognitive, or ‘thinking skill’ tests.

A comprehensive developmental evaluation process is performed by a developmental pediatrician, child psychologist, speech-language pathologist, or occupational therapist. The process involves observation, structured tests and you will also be required to fill out questionnaires and provide required inputs regarding your child’s behaviour and development.

While different mental health professionals use a variety of assessment tools and techniques, the guidelines laid out by The National Autism Plan for Children specifies that the autism assessment for children should include:

  • Reports from all relevant settings, such as your child’s school, or nursery
  • An autism-specific developmental and family history assessment
  • Observations of the child made over a few settings
  • Cognitive, communication, behaviour, and mental health assessments
  • A detailed analysis of the family members’ needs and strengths
  • A full physical examination of the child
  • If applicable, additional tests and assessments for other conditions

Preparing Yourself For The Child ASD Assessment Process

The assessment process can take some time and be quite stressful for your child if they are not fully prepared for the sessions. It could be beneficial to plan ahead with these steps:

  • Learn about Autism: Learning about the condition will help you prepare for what your child’s needs will be and also help you prepare with the required questions that you may need to ask the medical professionals who will be working with you and your child during the assessment process. You could refer to some of these useful resources to get you started:
  • Prepare your child’s records: Have a detailed report of your child’s medical records ready, and any previous behavioural or developmental evaluations. Additionally, you could also record your observations of your child’s developmental and behavioural changes over a period of time, which could also be helpful to the assessment process.
  • Ensure you have support: The process of assessment is not only time-consuming but can be extremely emotionally draining and rather than go through it alone, having a family member or friend to accompany you during these tests.
  • Seek intervention services: You do not have to wait for a diagnostic report to begin treatment but if your child would benefit from intervention services such as occupational, speech, social or physical therapy. You could refer to these resources, to begin with:

We understand that going through this process can be difficult and feel overwhelming. If you would like to speak to our caring staff to get more information or simply clear your doubts, we are happy to help.

Does Mindfulness Help Social Anxiety?

August 10, 2020

Anxiety can be a challenging condition to live with, often having a significant impact on your mental, emotional and even physical wellbeing. If you are suffering from anxiety, and you feel that you are unable to control your fears and worries to an extent that it is preventing you from performing your daily, normal tasks, you could benefit from trying mindfulness techniques such as meditation, which has proven to be effective in reducing stress and anxiety.

What Is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the ability to be completely present, fully aware of where you are, and completely invested in what you are doing. It lets you be free from external distractions and focus your complete undivided attention on the task at hand. By training yourself to be mindful, you will be able to prevent obstructive thoughts and be one hundred percent present in the current moment.

How Can Mindfulness Help Me Deal With Anxiety?

If you are suffering from anxiety, one of the biggest struggles you are facing is your ability to control your emotions. Intense fears caused by certain events or persistent worries that are largely disproportionate to the underlying cause can make you extremely anxious, affecting your ability to regulate your emotions.

Meditation research has shown that following a consistent mindfulness programme over a period of time helps the brain to reprogram its neural pathways, thereby enabling you to be in better control of your emotions. It helps you become more aware of your feelings and thoughts, without being compelled to react to them.

How Can You Achieve Mindfulness?

Like most practices, mindfulness requires dedicated, focus, and consistent practice. Specialists recommend mindfulness techniques be practised every day, as the more regularly you train your mind, the more aware you become of the thoughts, emotions, physical reactions and world around you. You can start your journey towards mindfulness by following these steps:

Be mindful of one thing at a time

When you start trying to focus your mind, it is very easy to get pulled in multiple directions, with your mind switching from one thought to another constantly. Since you cannot be mindful of multiple thoughts at the same time, start by focusing on just one thing at a time. This could be either a task that you are working on, or a mild body ache, but try to focus and be fully aware of that particular element for a prolonged period of time.

Spend More Time Alone

While it can be difficult to find some ‘me time’ when you have a busy schedule, take a few minutes from your day to be by yourself. Pulling away from social interactions and being by yourself can help your mind to slow down the electrical impulses generated by your brainwaves and in-turn helping with social anxiety. This will help you to gain more control over your thoughts.

Meditate

The next step towards achieving mindfulness, and undoubtedly the most important one, is meditation. Start by spending a few minutes every day meditating and gradually increase this to a minimum of 20 minutes, before extending to 40 minutes or more. Ensure you stick to a routine – find a comfortable location that you can use daily, find the best time of the day for you to try and relax, and let your family know that you cannot be disturbed during this time. Find a calming meditation script that helps you to clear the clutter from your mind, and reduce your stress levels.

Here are some useful mindfulness and meditation resources that could help including a video on guided mindfulness meditation.

By investing time in yourself and achieving mindfulness, you can better manage your anxiety and lead a happy, healthy life free from the constant fear and worry that anxiety can cause.

Does my Child Have ADHD?

July 1, 2020

It is normal for children to often lose interest in the task at hand and jump to something else, or occasionally forget their school work, or to get restless easily. But if your child seems to be repeatedly showing signs of impulsiveness, is hyperactive in a way that is beyond what you would consider acceptable, and is highly inattentive, these may actually be signs of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) also referred to as Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD.

ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that appears in early childhood, often before the age of seven. While as a parent, you may be worried about ADHD limiting your child from exploring their potential at school or leading a happy life when they grow, it is important to understand that ADHD can be treated.

The treatment of ADHD typically involves a professional diagnosis of your child’s developmental and psychosocial history, a children’s ADHD assessment, as well as observation of their symptoms and behavioral patterns. Following the assessment, a treatment plan best suited to your child’s individual needs will be created. This plan will include a variety of treatments and therapies. It may or may not include medication, depending on your child’s age, conditions, and needs. By taking this bespoke approach to ADD treatment, Psymplicity helps your child learn how to manage their symptoms effectively, perform better at school, improve their family and social life, and go on to lead a happy, fulfilling adult life.

As a parent, it can be challenging to differentiate between ADHD symptoms and a normal active child. If you feel that your child is showing signs of ADHD at school, at home, or in social situations, you can observe them closely to see if they are exhibiting a significant number of the below symptoms:

  1. Difficulty sustaining attention
    Your child finds it difficult to stay focused during class or while completing an activity, even one they consider fun.
  2. Constantly daydreaming
    You often find them staring into space, oblivious to their surroundings, daydreaming.
  3. Easily prone to tantrums
    Your child finds it rather difficult to control their emotions, often throwing temper tantrums when they are unhappy with a situation.
  4. Lack of attention to detail
    Your child’s schoolwork has a lot of mistakes, and they don’t pay attention to detail while performing most activities.
  5. Easily distracted
    Even the smallest of stimuli, like a small noise, can distract your child from any activity that they are doing.
  6. Difficult being organised
    Their study desk is always messy, they are unable to organise simple tasks, such as planning out their after school activities, and constantly miss deadlines.
  7. Forgetful
    They miss out or forget something regularly, like schoolwork or playdates or even carrying their lunch.
  8. Trouble waiting
    They are impatient when it comes to taking turns, and get upset when they need to wait for something, even when they play with other kids.
  9. Constantly interrupting
    They lack the ability to be respectful of others’ needs or space, and constantly interrupt conversations or speak over others.
  10. Fidgeting
    They are always fidgeting and highly restless, constantly moving around even when they are asked to sit down at their desk.
  11. Avoid tasks that need extended attention
    Staying focused in class or participating in an activity that requires them to be attentive for a continuous period of time can be very frustrating for them.
  12. Inability to follow instructions
    Following simple straightforward instructions can be overwhelming for them, at school, or at home.
  13. Talks excessively
    Your child tends to talk excessively in many different situations and settings.
  14. Inability to play quietly
    Your child finds it difficult to play or engage in any leisure activities quietly, and they are normally quite loud, making excessive noises or talking.
  15. Symptoms displayed in more than one environment
    Your child is displaying many of these symptoms in more than one environment, such as home and school.

If your child is displaying most of these symptoms, it would be a good idea to speak to a mental health professional who can perform a diagnosis and suggest the appropriate treatment to best help your child cope with their condition. And do remember, ADHD is manageable and your child, with the right care, can grow up to lead a wonderfully healthy and happy life!

5 Ways to Cope With Feeling Coronavirus Anxiety

April 30, 2020

Over the past few weeks, our team of specialists at Psymplicity has been helping people manage their anxiety issues and are here to help you if you need us at all.

This is a unique situation we are all in, to say the least. Never before have we encountered a crisis of this magnitude. With self-isolation, lockdown, and quarantine becoming the order of the day, reverting to ‘normalcy’ seems like a hopeful dream.

While this has been a rather challenging time for most, for some the crisis has caused immense mental stress and anxiety. It does not help that a non-stop barrage of news and statistics of rising cases and increasing deaths are all around you, all the time. So if you are feeling stressed and losing your peace of mind right now, it is okay. As human beings, our minds are expected to have anxiety in reaction to such distressing situations.

However, it is important to understand that while a reasonable amount of concern is expected, continued stress and growing anxiety can affect your health. We have listed 5 effective steps that can help you cope with your anxiety: 

1. Accept, process and prepare 

As is any case of anxiety-inducing information or thoughts, it is important to accept them and process them. The more you try to fight the anxiety, the stronger and harder it will hit you. The positive aspect of being anxious is that it helps you remain aware of the dangers of the virus, be cautious and avoid risks to yourself and others, and prepare yourself if the virus does affect you or your family. Try to accept and process it, and move on, but do not get consumed by it. 

An effective way to deal with this anxiety is to focus your attention on preparing for worst-case scenarios. In the event you or your family member is experiencing symptoms, refer to these detailed guidelines from NHS on what you need to do. Equip yourself with all the necessary information you need to manage terms of your employment or raise claims by referring to these detailed guidelines from HMRC.

2. Get a holistic perspective

It is very easy to get overwhelmed by the worrying statistics that we see in the news. But try to focus merely on fatality and death rates, but look for information on recovery rates to gain a holistic perspective. Always look for credible sources of information such as WHO that keeps updating holistic and accurate information in real-time. 

Look for stories about survivors who have come out of this to share their experiences, positive stories about the generosity of strangers, and inspiring acts of kindness and selflessness. As much as you are bombarded with negative news, surround yourself with positive stories. BBC has a dedicated section on uplifting stories that are heart-warming and inspiring.

3. Distract yourself

Don’t get overwhelmed by work. Working from home can be tricky if there are no boundaries, so make sure you take time for yourself. Read a book, bake a cake, connect with an old friend, do something that takes your mind off the stress of work, and the negativity of the news.

If you are not sure of where to begin, refer to this fantastic list of 50 free ideas during the lockdown right from painting to writing a novel.

4. Stay healthy

Taking care of yourself is extremely important at this time. Staying indoors, without any physical activity can be challenging, so create a routine that includes dedicated time for exercise or relaxation. It can be tempting to turn to junk food, but while an occasional indulgence is perfectly fine, try and eat healthily.

There are a number of health and wellness experts sharing tips on exercise, clean eating recipes, meditation techniques, etc. Whether you prefer Yoga or pilates or cardio, you can find the right home workout ideas from fitness experts here.

5. Talk about your feelings

Despite taking initiatives to try and get over your anxiety, it is not always possible to just snap out of it. It is completely normal to be upset, feel helpless, or troubled. It will not get better unless you talk about it. Speak to your friends or family and talk about what worries you. If you are not comfortable sharing these thoughts, consider writing them down. Transferring your worries onto a piece of paper can relieve you of bottled-up stress. 

There are also a number of helplines and support groups that are here to help you. You can find an NHS recommended list of support lines to reach out here.

If your anxiety issues are getting hard to manage, contact Psymplicity, we are anxiety specialists based in London, get in touch for an online appointment today.

8 Tips for Working From Home with ADHD

April 30, 2020

Working from home will be the new normal at least for the next few weeks, so it is important to equip yourself with the necessary tools needed to stay focused, manage stress, perform well and manage a healthy work-life balance. 

Working from home could be a blessing for some suffering from ADHD as it helps them stay focused, away from all the distractions at work. However, it could also be stressful if you do not segregate work from your personal time and get overwhelmed by it. 

Here are a few tips to help you efficiently work from home:

1. Get organised

Getting organised sets the tone for working from home. 

  • Organise your workstation – remember your work station is only for your work and remove all items that can cause distractions and lure your focus away from the tasks at hand. 
  • Organise your work supplies – filing systems, papers, stationery and make sure everything is exactly where you need. 
  • Organise your computer/ laptop – delete unwanted applications, keep your home screen clean and devoid of clutter to avoid diversions
  • Equip yourself with the right tools that you need to stay productive. Here is a list of productivity apps that can help you make your work from home more streamlined and organised – https://zapier.com/learn/remote-work/productivity-apps-remote-work/

2. Plan & prioritise

For many, each day can come with its own surprises and challenges at work. To ensure you don’t get overwhelmed with tasks or deadlines, start planning ahead. Set a weekly schedule to list the top tasks that you wish to accomplish. Keep a daily planner to make a list of tasks and deliverables you plan to work on or complete that day. Make sure you prioritize the tasks and start working on tasks with higher priority first thing each day and work your way through the rest.

Refer to this great list of useful and easy to follow tips and techniques to prioritise your work:

https://www.thriveyard.com/20-tips-on-how-to-prioritize-work-and-meet-deadlines/

3. Fight hyperfocus

Hyperfocus can be great to produce high-quality work that results from an unwavering focus on the task at hand. However, if left unchecked, you could end up spending hours working on a single task and miss out on all other activities or even essential tasks such as preparing a meal for yourself.

If you have the tendency to get hyper-focused on a particular task and lose track of time, make sure you set an alarm to let you know when you need to switch off from the task at hand and move on to the next. You could also request a friend or colleague to check in on you and help you breaking away from a particular task.

4. Keep track of time

Define clear timelines for each task and try adhering to it as much as possible. Of course, it is understandable that some tasks may stretch beyond your planned timelines, but as far as possible plan and estimate a specific time duration for every task to be completed each day. Sticking to a strict schedule can help you stay focused and perform optimally.

5. Do not overcommit

This is probably good advice to follow anytime, whether you are working from home or otherwise. However, especially in the case of working from home, it is important to stay aware of the responsibilities that you can take on and deliver. Overcommitting can add too much stress and cause your anxiety levels to go up, affecting your ability to focus and deliver good quality work.

6. Share your workload

As someone with ADHD, to be a good performer at work it is vital to understand your strengths and weaknesses. If you find yourself struggling with certain tasks, it can cause you to get distressed and affect your overall performance as well as significantly increase your stress levels. Ask your colleague to help you or delegate to your subordinate or speak to your manager if you feel that you need assistance with certain tasks or tasks.

7. Regulate your energy level

Staying cooped at home and working long hours can take a toll on your body. Try to establish healthy routines like regular exercising, eating healthy food, a quick meditation session before you start your work, and a relaxation exercise once you log off. Remember you don’t have to do an hour-long workout session, but it is important to squeeze in a few minutes every day. You can get inspirations on quick and easy to do exercise routine here- https://www.heart.co.uk/lifestyle/exercise-working-from-home-without-gym

8. Set clear boundaries

Set clear boundaries between your personal and professional zones and do not let them overlap. Stick to fixed hours of work and get your family to support you by respecting your working time by not disturbing you. Stay away from other distractions such as Netflix or Social media to have a productive workday.

If you suffer from severe ADHD symptoms, speak to Psymplicity today. We are Anxiety specialists in London and now offer online appointments to help patients during this crisis.

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