Anuraag Jaiswar

The COVID-19 situation has given a rising toll to emotional problems for various reasons-loss of jobs; shutdown of businesses, financial deterioration, reduction in physical activities, etc. Although I believe that the situation can be worked out with proper planning and effort, even if not at a faster pace, we have witnessed some cases of poor decision making in the recent past and to be honest, they are not to be completely blamed for it. Our brain is probably the most complicated object of creation and it responds differently to different situations and sometimes it becomes a little difficult to control the way it responds. While speaking of lack of control in brain response- “Depression” and “Anxiety” is what I am addressing here, and something which I will focus here in my article, besides other mental disorders. And you would be surprised to know how a typical physical activity fits into the picture. To understand it, we need to dig a little deeper on how the brain responds to stress, anxiety and activity.

Here I would like to thank Dr Shambhavi Samir Alve, a Psychotherapist by profession, for providing me with the necessary facts required to piece together this important critique.

Understanding Depression

“Depression” is a popular term, but what is it exactly and what causes it in the first place? In definition, “Depression is a mental health disorder characterized by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life”. It is different than regular sadness which usually fades away within a period of days or weeks, no matter how deep the grief is. But before you come to a point, read it whole. There are types of it. Not exactly stages, but various types. However, in some cases, it may vary from mild to moderate or severe. It is a vast spectrum. Therefore, I’ll try to stick to the common links. “Clinical Depression” or “Major Depressive Disorder” is the most common and consistent of all forms of depression. What triggers it in each case may vary. Reasons could be situational like the loss of a closed one, or it may be hormonal, financial or even seasonal. But the symptoms are more or less the same in every case. Some usual symptoms include:

• Depressed mood.
• Hopelessness.
• Changes in appetite Fatigue.
• Loss of interest in daily activities.
• Indecisiveness etc.

Anxiety and the COVID-19 situation

There are two more common terms that you must have come across, “Stress” and “Anxiety”. Stress, in this modern world, is almost a part of our daily lives; something we deal with on a much regular basis. Anxiety, again, is merely the brain’s natural response to stress. But prolonged, unchecked and extreme feelings of anxiety may lead to an Anxiety Disorder. And the same goes for stress too. In fact, exposure to severe stress for a really long period “may” lead to either Depression or Anxiety disorder. Again, anxiety is a whole different subject in the book of Neurology. But, here’s the deal! There is one thing common in all the Mental disorders, which is “Neurological Chemical Imbalance”. In simple words, it is when the “bad hormones” take over and blocks the effects of the good ones. The popular bad hormone namely “Cortisol”, also called the stress hormone is a major contributor in the process.

The reason why I have mentioned about the COVID situation amidst all of these is quite clear. There has not only been a drastic surge in the levels of stress and hopelessness amongst people, but their activity levels have also dropped promptly. And the presence or absence of physical activity makes a major difference to the whole set of circumstances.

Role of Physical Activities

To understand that, you need to know at first a little bit about how the hormones affect you and your thought processes. Cortisol, the bad hormone, is a bi-product of the negative emotions that I just mentioned and it suppresses the effects of the “good hormones” also called “happy hormones”. Physical activity is great, probably the best producer of two important happy hormones, namely “Endorphins” and “Dopamine”. Physical activities help restore the balance of the brain chemicals, helping you to further process the emotions of positive thinking, reasoning or motivation. Stress, anxiety, hopelessness and no activity altogether form a toxic cycle that acquires the potential to lead a person towards mental illness. A physical activity, as you would have known, helps break the chain for good to minimize the chances of the brain entering into such a phase.

Diet and proper sleep are equally important to feed the other good hormones as well; to create “balance”. And if I had to make a statement regarding this, then ”Don’t let your bad hormones make decisions for you..”

The writer is a certified fitness expert. Having worked with brands like Talwalkers and Golds Gym, at present he is the Strength and Conditioning Coach & Nutrition Consultant of Guwahati City Football Club.
Instagram Handle : @the_badtrainer