New Mexico Health Connections | my connection | Summer 2020

Take extra care of your mental health Y ou’re preoccupied and having difficulty focusing. Your sleep isn’t great. And you aren’t eating as well as you know you should. You may be stressed out by COVID-19. It’s not unusual to be anxious during a disease outbreak, especially a pandemic like this one. But chronic stress isn’t good for your body or mind. It might be time to take some steps to ease the pressure on yourself. Recognize the signs of stress How do you know if your mental health is suffering during this outbreak? You may be feeling stressed if you’re having: • Fearful thoughts about your health and the health of your family and friends. • Trouble sleeping. • Changes in your eating patterns. • Difficulty concentrating. • A worsening of chronic health problems. • A worsening of depression or other mental health conditions. • A rise in your use of alcohol, tobacco or other drugs. Homemade hand sanitizers: A warning Health experts tell us to wash our hands often with soap and water to get rid of germs. That remains one of the best ways to help avoid infection with the new coronavirus. Using hand sanitizers is a close second. But these products can be hard to find in stores right now. Still, you shouldn’t try to make your own sanitizer. Made incorrectly, they won’t cleanse your hands. Worse, they could burn your skin. So stick to soap and water whenever you can. Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; U.S. Food and Drug Administration 2 { MYCONNECTION } { W E L L N E S S }