Tulsa Mental Health Professionals Work To Ease Anxiety Of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Fears

As fears mount about coronavirus (COVID-19), mental health professionals are working to keep people calm.

Counselors said the best way to reduce that anxiety and nervousness is to just take care of yourself.

Whether it's on a computer, a tablet or a TV, news about COVID-19 is everywhere, which is why Cathy Olberding said one of the many ways to reduce anxiety is to reduce your intake of information.

"Get a little break from it. You don't have to watch every newscast every day that has everything," said Cathy Olberding, assistant clinical director for Counseling & Recovery Services of Oklahoma. 

Olberding is a licensed professional counselor, and said she's already seen clients who are anxious about the virus. She said one of the most important ways to stay healthy is to just take care of yourself.

"You still need to have good sleep and you still need to eat balanced meals. You still need to have a routine because those are the things that calm us," said Olberding.

Olberding said another way to stay mentally healthy is to talk with other people about your fears and work on breathing techniques.

"We could do a systematic relaxation, so they are systematically relaxing the mussels in their body. I can teach people to do short meditation or long meditation," said Olberding.

If you've got kids, she said answer their questions honestly and reassure them that while there are sick people in the world, there are also health care workers trying to make them better. She said to be calm and explain in ways that are comforting.

Olberding said if you're still having trouble processing all of the information, talk to a counselor or a mental health professional.