Progressively, we have insisted on the importance of creating routines to structure the day to day. This was quite clear to us at the beginning and we saw that it worked, but it has been more than a month and a half, and we are seeing that those people who have relaxed a little in this sense (routines and structures, above all) have it a little worse. It is important to favor again the adaptation to the present moment.
People’s stress when leaving home for fear of contagion: strange sensation of people walking alone in the street to their jobs, difficulties for many to concentrate… This adaptation, which we go through during the different phases, can be complicated for anyone, but even more so for those who are suffering from a previous psychological or psychiatric emotional problem.
How it will change the affective character
Focusing on one of the possible repercussions of the confinement of people who are locked up in their homes, we are going to talk about the Cabin Syndrome.
In order to understand the Cabin Syndrome, we are going to situate ourselves at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, in the context in which many hunters pursued, among other things, to get their hands on animal skins and gold prospectors who sought fortune in the northern part of the USA and Canada. In addition, the latter used to spend the long winter months in their cabins because of the harsh weather conditions. Then, it would start to snow and they would be trapped in their cabins, unable to get out.
What happened to these people? Isolation used to affect them in a very evident way, so evident that in 1900 this syndrome, this set of symptoms, began to be clinically described, giving it the name of Cabin Syndrome.
But throughout history, not only hunters and gold diggers of that time have suffered from it, but these symptoms have been common to other people and at other very different times. For example, in lighthouse keepers, before lighthouses were automated, in many astronauts, in explorers in polar stations and, in short, in some of those people who have had to be isolated and often confined in solitude for long periods of time.
What can we say about the intensity of the symptoms?
They depend and depend on several factors that can be very diverse. They can range from claustrophobia, the most intense, to the most simple boredom, the most banal. Although this syndrome does not figure among the diagnostic classifications used by mental health professionals and is considered a mere colloquial term, it has been rescued in recent days to describe the feelings of many people confined to their homes. The social distancing, confinement and isolation that have been imposed in many parts of the world to combat this pandemic, make it more possible for people to experience something similar to that Cabin Syndrome which, in this case, could manifest itself with emotional difficulties of the person inside their home and problems in getting out of it.
Symptoms can vary greatly from person to person. Personality factors, cultural and economic factors will be determining factors when facing and managing isolation and confinement. It also influences if one is alone, the type of people who accompany him/her. Certain types of people (more extroverted ones, often) may find confinement more complicated than others. And more introverted people, who tend to feel much more comfortable doing activities at home, may perhaps cope a little better.
Specific symptoms of Cabin Syndrome
The symptoms are heterogeneous; not everyone will experience the same symptoms or with the same intensity. And in fact, many people will not suffer from any of them. Another thing to keep in mind is that some may be indicative of other pathologies and manifest themselves in other problems. The main symptoms shown by this disorder are:
- Tiredness.
- Irritability.
- Impatience.
- Feeling of being caged.
- Inability to cope with stress.
- Concentration problems.
- Low motivation.
- Eating disorders.
- Sleeping problems, to reconcile the hours of sleep.
Some are minor symptoms, such as boredom, but sometimes problems in the management of self-control and self-regulation appear in varying intensities. Sometimes the feeling of helplessness and loneliness are associated with an increased risk for depression and other mental illnesses or problems.
What about isolation specifically in this COVID-19 pandemic?
Some people have also developed a fear of leaving the house for fear of contagion. We all agree that we should not relax and that we should follow the same precautions so as not to become infected, but there are people who, for example, when taking down the garbage, experience real panic even if their street is completely empty and their neighbors are acting responsibly. It is important to qualify this.
The problem I am referring to is not the fear of driving on a street full of people who do not keep a safe distance or do not comply with the rules we have been given. That fear would be an adaptive fear that can lead people to move away to avoid contagion and that would be fine, because the coronavirus has not disappeared and we will have to live with it for a long time.
Ignoring the indications given to us by official bodies, in this sense, can lead to an increase in the number of cases of infection and, therefore, of deaths.
Nor am I referring to that understandable and adaptive fear that we can all feel the first times we leave home and that, as I say, is normal and will pass little by little.
What I want to refer to at this moment is to those people who take the appropriate precautions to avoid becoming infected, but that fear still persists. Cabin Syndrome can make it difficult for us to stay at home and also to go outdoors. And in both cases, mental health professionals can help.
Many of these people suffering from this fear will have to go back to work, if they have not already done so.
It is important that companies take this factor into account and that they know that this can happen to some of their workers so that they are more sensitive and facilitate, as far as possible, that they can receive or continue their psychological assistance if necessary. Nowadays, Psychology through videoconferencing makes it possible for patients to receive this assistance in a very extended schedule, even more flexible than when we are in the consulting rooms and that does not interfere, in most cases, in working hours.
Who will find it more difficult?
It’s not good to generalize, but hypochondriacs are likely to have a slightly more difficult time, especially if they have not yet come out. In these cases, and despite the fact that their companies provide them with absolutely all the protection measures available to them so that they do not become infected or greatly reduce the chances of this happening, they may be more vulnerable in this regard.
Another group that may find it more complicated is that of people with physical limitations, as they may be afraid of something happening to them on their commute to work or, for example, may choose not to leave their home, their comfort zone.
In these cases: the help of psychologists
In all these situations that generate clinically significant discomfort, psychologists help these people to return to normality by teaching them clinics to expose themselves to the situations.
Recommendations
If the person is healthy and has to return to work, but feels some tolerable fear, try successive approaches to leaving the house throughout the days. You can start with small steps, such as opening the door without actually going out.
If it gets complicated and this fact generates a lot of anxiety in the person, it is important to contact a mental health professional so that he/she can receive help.
On the other hand, it is important to explain feelings about how the person is handling the whole situation of confinement and possible problems in getting out of the house. Socializing by telephone, video call or other means should also be encouraged. Sharing with other people allows the person to feel less lonely.
If you have to telework, it is important to try to take the same breaks that you would take if you were in the office. In many occasions, teleworking favors that workers dedicate more hours than usual and end up exhausted.
It can also help to develop a hobby, such as sorting photo albums, doing housework, learning to play an instrument, altruistic activities…
The pillars that support a good strategy to prevent and to face some of the symptoms of confinement and of this Cabin syndrome can be:
- Try to get out of the house, if possible, always doing things right.
- Maintain healthy eating patterns.
- Plan and check to see if we are sticking to our plans.
- Stimulate our work through work, hobbies, reading, hobbies, board games….
- Encourage social contact through any means (telephone, video call…).
- Do physical exercise appropriate to our age and physical condition.
Finally, it should be pointed out that in many cases these symptoms and this discomfort appear discontinuously, manifesting themselves at times throughout the day, without any significant deterioration over time. If so, when this happens to us, it may be useful to try to distract ourselves by resorting to the above recommendations.