With the current lockdown it’s safe to say that everyone is a little anxious. Even more so if you live with things like generalised anxiety disorder, depression and the like.

I know I’ve been teetering on the brink of a panic attack for days, so I chatted to an expert for some practical advice for myself and whoever else might need it.

Firstly let me tell you who the expert is, it is Candice Clark, a lovely lady I met though a women in business forum. She is a yoga therapist that specialises in trauma and mental health. Candice has a degree in Child and Family psychology, an honours degree in psychology, is a registered Christian Yoga Association Trainer (I didn’t even know this was a thing), a certified Holy Yoga Trauma Sensitive Instructor and is in the process
of completing her training as a Certified Holy Yoga Therapist.

www.instagram.com/candsclarkvz
www.candiceclark.co.za

Candice believes that mental health is paramount to overall health and that becoming acutely away of our emotions and how we respond to events is very important. Suppression, avoidance and
over-identification are not helpful.

Ways to cope with anxiety during lockdown

Solitary practices

• Journaling
• Meditation
• Prayer
• Mindful movement practices such as yoga

The 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique:”

Grounding and centering when you are feeling really overwhelmed are
incredibly powerful!
To ground yourself:

• Name 5 things you can see
• Name 4 things you can touch
• Name 3 things you can hear
• Name 2 things you can smell
• Name 1 thing you can taste

Anxiety in kids

Kids role model what parents do, more than what they say. So be very
intentional about how you are experiencing this lock down period and
be acutely aware of how your fears and anxieties may be picked up by
your kids more than you think!

My first tip would be to spend some time journaling what this period
means for you. What are your fears & anxieties? Reflect on them, and
let them go – knowing that this intervention is here whether we like
it or not, and mulling on the fears & anxieties at best does nothing
for our mental health and at worst can put us into a horrible spiral.
Then spend some time reflecting on how you’d like to feel during
this period, and the actions you can take to support yourself in
feeling that way. I.e. you might decide to join an online support
community, a weekly online yoga class, clean out some of your
cupboards, embark on a creative project… There are endless options

This may seem counterintuitive to the question – but again, kids role
model us! So spend some time integrating your own experiences and
holding space for yourself first. You’ll then know exactly what
steps to follow with your children 🙂

*If this feels totally out of reach for you,
please (rather sooner than later) reach out to a counselor or therapist
There are great resources over at www.sadag.co.za