Coping with anxiety about coronavirus

This is an understandably stressful time and it's normal to feel worried. What can we learn from CBT for health anxiety that might help us with feelings of anxiety during the pandemic? In this short bonus episode, Dr Lucy Maddox interviews Dr Jo Daniels from Bath University, about things we know are likely to help. 

 

Show Notes and Transcript

Podcast episode produced by Dr Lucy Maddox for BABCP

Read an article by Dr Jo Daniels on how to stop anxiety about coronavirus spiralling out of control here:  https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-how-to-stop-the-anxiety-spiralling-out-of-control-133166

Another article about panic here: https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/truth-about-panic

And this about how it's normal to feel worried:  https://www.ft.com/content/d6c65a50-6395-11ea-abcc-910c5b38d9ed

BBC piece on protecting your mental health at this time:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51873799

BABCP: www.babcp.com

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Transcript

Lucy: Hi, I’m Dr Lucy Maddox and this is Let’s Talk About CBT. This is a podcast brought to you by the British Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Psychotherapies.  

This is a bit of an unusual episode. I’ve come to Bath University to interview Dr Jo Daniels who has experience in researching health anxiety in relation to medical conditions. There’s obviously a great deal of worry around at the moment, understandably, in relation to coronavirus.  

I’ve come to ask Jo about how we can look after our psychological wellbeing as well as our physical health. The information that Jo talks about is based on cognitive behavioural therapy principles for anxiety. Obviously there’s no evidence base for this in relation to coronavirus in particular, but really health anxiety in relation to any physical illness has some very similar features, so we hope that this advice can be helpful.