Indians are facing the first major nationwide lockdown of three weeks which has led to a radical change making us home bound. We need to stay safe from spreading the deadly COVID-19 disease which has already taken 77 lives out of more than 3500 active cases in India alone. To date, more than 12 lakh people globally have been affected by the COVID-19 disease and more than 65,000 people have lost their lives ( corona figures updated till  April 5). The virus directly impacts the body’s immune system and affects the respiratory system. The virus, which belongs to the SARS family, gives rise to acute symptoms like dry cough, fever, and tiredness.

Mental wellbeing can aggravate symptoms:

Psychoneuroimmunology is a field of science that connects the study of the immune system with the central nervous system and explains the mind-body relationship. The absence of mental wellbeing can aggravate symptoms, in diseases primarily involving the body’s immunity. Lack of social support and stress can make a person susceptible to infections and result in a compromised immune system. In 1989, Lovejoy and Sisson studied that the presence of social support and successful coping influences susceptibility and progression of AIDS in HIV positive cases.

The immune system is linked to the central nervous system through the endocrine system and hormones. Neurotransmitters, the endogenous chemicals in the brain, stimulate the endocrine glands under stress, and the production of hormone prepares the body for fight-or-flight. This, in turn, affects the immunity to increase the production of White Blood Cells (WBCs) to tackle the situation at a cellular level. Hence, if the person perceives a perennial threat, the body will perpetually be prepared for a fight response, thus jeopardizing the immunity and making the self, vulnerable to infections. The principle of psychoneuroimmunology has played a role in several autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, Grave’s Disease, to name a few. Strategies to foster emotional well-being:

 As COVID-19 is also a condition where a person with compromised immunity can contract and develop symptoms, it can be assumed that the same mind-body relation plays a role. In simple terms, a healthy mind can reduce the chances of one falling ill and catching an infection. We can employ the following strategies to foster emotional well-being and in turn boost the immune system to fight against infection in these trying times.

1.Engaging in physical exercise

2.Yoga, meditation or any form of physical exercise can improve the parasympathetic nervous system in our body which promotes calmness and relaxation. This will help us to exhaust most of our idleness and channelize it into a sense of being at ease.

3.Communicating with others

The fast-paced professional lives of people these days, limit the amount of time one spends with their families, a situation that now stands reversed due to the current lockdown. This gives a chance to foster communication and express needs and desires, that was hitherto not possible. Communication helps in building social support, empathy, and understanding among people, thus ceasing a sense of isolation. Ultimately it instills a sense of collective hope to alleviate the feeling of uncertainty and impending doom.

Trina Banerjee

Clinical Psychologist, Hutchins Road

Cooke Town, Bangalore- 560084

Mob:8777325833 Email: tbanerjee2@gmail.coma

The author is apracticing Clinical Psychologist and Lecturer and currently pursuing a Ph.D. under the guidance of Dr. K Jayasankara Reddy, Professor, Christ University, Bangalore.

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