The emerging crisis of the Coronavirus, and the quarantine procedures followed in many countries, are likely to have psychological effects due to fear of transmission and the stress caused by isolation in homes. Psychiatrist Serge Ives expects to report "anxiety, depression, insomnia and cognitive disorders". This doctor, like many of his colleagues, closed his clinic and is now giving advice via Skype.
This unprecedented situation, stemming from the recent outbreak of the Corona virus, which started from China at the end of 2019, prompted the World Health Organization, earlier this month, to publish a series of recommendations for the mental health of the population, whether for isolated people, the elderly, or medical workers. Among these tips, addressing false news, due to its negative impact on the population, and encouraging dialogue in cases of stress.
Previous problems
With the outbreak of the virus and measures of home quarantine, psychiatrist Fatima Boufait says, "We note the arrival of new patients who already have psychological problems." This period exposes them to difficult emotional conditions that they must manage. ” The psychiatrist lists a number of problems and anxieties recorded by her patients in "remote" consultations. It includes "fear of death, infection, and loss of loved ones", in addition to "differences within families or mainly vulnerable groups, boredom and seclusion, and inability To anticipate matters, declining incomes, inability to move, isolation, and having to stand with oneself. ”
Disastrous scenarios
Of all the catastrophic scenarios in circulation, a pandemic theory paralyzing movement in the world was less likely, perhaps for many, after years of financial crises, climate attacks and emergencies. This explains the current state of shock, according to psychologist Roland Goure, who worked on the aftermath of the 2015 attacks in France. "Traumatic situations happen when a person is unprepared for an event, and when we are faced with something surprising psychologically," he says. If you knew that something would happen, you would prepare for it. Psychological trauma is not equivalent at all to the trauma of people. This was translated by denying the danger recently required by some of those who used to reach out to shake hands or panic in other patients, who have a feeling that something "collapses in the way we live." Serge Ives notes that this reaction is normal in cases of epidemics, which are stations rooted in the collective imagination since the time of the Black Plague in the Middle Ages, and the Spanish flu at the turn of the last century. He explains that "what is recorded in the first place is the normality (a term first used by the sociologist Durkheim), anxiety about the breakdown of social ties, the absence of standards, and the panic related to the pillaging." Added to this is the fear of transmission, which is enhanced by the hidden nature of the virus.
Closed structures
Another anxiety associated with the fear of starvation (which explains consumers' eagerness to store basic products) is evidence of a vital involuntary reaction, as well as sexual appetite, which is the appetite for life when we fear death, living in loneliness or losing loved ones. But in unprecedented cases, unprecedented responses arise, "collective home quarantine measures adopted in many countries around the world, according to the Chinese model, may put mental health in some people at stake, especially since many facilities specialized in this field are closed." "The people in the family seem to be more resilient to the situation than those who are isolated, which could lead to damage that we are not yet fully aware of," Ives added. "We do not know what will result from loneliness, nor do we know what will happen as a person is infested," he added.
Imbalance in the relationship
In groups and family cells, home quarantine is a source of problems, including suppression and imbalance in the relationship between individuals, which can sometimes be translated violently.
"Conflicts with teenagers are increasing because they are not fully aware of (the situation), and they want to go out with their friends," says Fatima Beauveau de la Maisonive. Also, some elderly people want to live as in the past, because they say they have nothing to lose. ”