As cases of COVID-19 spread grow, concern and panic seem to increase in some people.

This is reflected in unnecessary massive purchases in supermarkets. But why does this happen and how to control it.

How does the coronavirus affect psychologically?

According to Mary Castro Ataurima, Psychologist at Clínica Ricardo Palma, happiness and fear are spread. If someone says that is going to buy more products because it is necessary, whoever hears it might think that they also “need” it, even if this is not true.

People are afraid of what they cannot control and since the spread of the virus cannot be stopped yet, many magnify everything out of fear and try to stock up unnecessarily.

Besides losing control of the situation, people stop trust in the authorities.

How do they act in emergencies?

With anxiety, uncertainty, and indirectly with selfishness, because they try to over-supply everything without thinking that others may have no access to basic products.

They think about taking care of themselves, but they don’t realize that by taking care of themselves they also have to take care of others, because others can infect them.

Buying in massive amounts cuts the tools to others to take care of themselves.

In very specific cases of people who may suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorders, these could damage their skin if they start washing their hands too often (every 10 or 5 minutes) and for no real reason.

Stay calm

The instinct of self-preservation makes you think of protecting your loved ones, but today it is necessary to think of others and the community.

If you live in a building, you can get together with your neighbors and think about what you can do if someone needs some kind of help.

You can take advantage of the situation to develop a correct hygiene culture and learn to properly wash your hands.

The level of anxiety that many people live will begin to decrease when everything begins to get back to normal life.

Transmit calm to boys and girls

If you stock up on a large number of products (tuna, toilet paper, etc.), children who see this and don’t understand the problem may start to feel fear and anxiety. You must be the children’s model.

It is recommended that children do not see this type of changing behavior.

They should be explained that from now on they need to have better cleaning habits and put them into practice.

You can also take advantage of more time spent indoors to share with your family and relax.

Lic. Mary Castro Ataurima
Psychologist at Clínica Ricardo Palma