MENTAL HEALTH BIBLIOGRAPHY
MENTAL HEALTH
Australian medical site. (2020). Looking after your mental health during the coronavirus outbreak.
https://www.beyondblue.org.au/the-facts/looking-after-your-mental-health-during-thecoronavirus-outbreak
Very good, concise and easy to read. Clearly lists signs of stress anxiety and depression with no
judgement. Just facts and ways to deal with them.
CDC. (2020). Daily Life and Coping https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-lifecoping/managing-stress-anxiety.html
CDC on Daily Life and Coping with stress and anxiety during the coronavirus.
____. (2020) How to Help Employees Cope with Coronavirus Fears. Lyra Health.
https://www.lyrahealth.com/blog/help-employees-cope-with-coronavirus-fears/
This blog, published by licensed clinical social workers, provides basic information: reinforcing
that employees, clients and families will experience stress and worry, even though the effects
may vary in intensity.
The author suggests reinforcing and encouraging the usual and reasonable precautions such as
avoiding contact with those that are sick, washing hands frequently, cleaning and disinfecting
regularly, and staying home when ill.
An important tip offered is to limit exposure to media reports, but seek out authoritative
sources of information.
They also emphasize the importance of avoiding “thinking traps” such as
• Catastrophizing: overestimating the consequences of something negative happening to
you
• Emotional reasoning: basing your interpretation solely on your emotional reactions.
• Probability overestimation: overestimating the probability that something negative will
happen.
There are a number of other patterns of thinking {see this article: Boone, Matt. (2018). Getting
to know your thinking traps. Lyra.} all of which can make you feel anxious, angry, or depressed.
And, they might cause unfavorable behaviors such as procrastinating, arguing with significant
others, or judging ourselves too harshly.
Colleagues, managers, and family members should be on the lookout for these behaviors in
order to provide support and encourage assistance or guidance from a health care provider or
EAP (employee assistance program).
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Ali, Shainna. (2020). Coping with Coronavirus Stress. Four mental health strategies to help you during the
COVID-19 pandemic. Psychology Today: 16Mar2020.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/modern-mentality/202003/coping-coronavirusstress
Manage your stress to increase your immunity. While stress is a normal part of life, it is a response
to external pressure and may cause symptoms such as:
• Sadness, confusion, irritability, anger, uneasiness, and even suicidal thoughts
• Reduced concentration, efficiency, and productivity
• Social withdrawal and isolation
• Interpersonal problems (lies, defensiveness, etc.)
• Tension (headaches, teeth grinding)
• Body pain (headaches, muscle spasms
• Reduced energy (tiredness, weakness, fatigue)
• Sleeping problems (nightmares, insomnia).
The first step to managing these symptoms is to recognize them. If you ignore them, you impede
your ability to manage your stress.
If you notice them and acknowledge them, you can take steps to help management them. And,
according to this author, one of the most important things you can do is limit your consumption of
news.
Practice self-care and indulge in different activities to channel your stress:
• Crafting
• Mediate
• Clean
• Play with a pet
• Read a book
• Call a loved one or someone who might be isolated and would like attention
• Watch a favorite movie
• Practice gratitude
• Take an online class
• Host a virtual gathering.
Be mindful that stress and anxiety can be debilitating. If you notice that your signs are difficult to
manage, don’t hesitate to seek professional help. If you have employees or colleagues whose
behavior might be symptomatic of stress or anxiety, be sure they are aware of their health and EAP
(employee assistance program.)
Fuller, Kristen. (2020). Is the coronavirus impacting our mental health? Psychology Today: 10Mar 2020.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/happiness-is-state-mind/202003/is-thecoronavirus-impacting-our-mental-health
Dr. Fuller is somewhat surprised by the frenzy this pandemic has caused. While the author does
not suggest ignoring the experts, discounting personal hygiene rules, or social distancing
guidelines, she does advocate thinking smart and taking care of our mental health.
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Her suggestions include:
• Stay connected in the community; stay in touch with friends and family and rely on
others when you need emotional support.
• Try not to make assumptions
• Follow reputable sources; avoid too much “news”
• Talk to your children
• If you are quarantined engage in activities that bring you joy: read a book, do an art
project, watch a movie or learn a new language.
Hotle, R. Keith. (2020). Implication of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) for Veteran Suicide. Pulse: 02 Apr2020.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/implications-coronavirus-covid-19-veteran-suicide-hotle-j-dmpa/?trackingId=AJ1c%2F%2Bvw1q%2FLLSqiS7rdPw%3D%3D
Chilling article on stats related to veteran suicide rates
Kurter, Heidi Lynne. (2020). 3 ways to keep employee morale up during the coronavirus outbreak.
Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/heidilynnekurter/2020/03/10/3-ways-to-keep-employeemorale-up-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/#2497ebc11b43
Coronavirus has turned into a crisis that impacts the workplace, the stock market and the health
of individuals. Many individuals and organizations are not equipped to deal with this triumvirate
of chaos.
Working and teaching remotely are forcing once resistant employers into making it a reality
overnight. Employees are becoming paranoid as they and their families worry about losing their
lives and their livelihoods. And, changes to our normal routines along with incessant fearmongering from the media are inciting panic, anxiety, and depression among the most stalwart
and resilient.
Kurter outlines three ways employers can reduce panic and keep morale up during the
outbreak:
• Be intentional about communications. It is imperative that leaders don’t get sucked into
the panic. Even so, they should model calm and compassionate behavior and open
communication.
• Be sure that employees understand the health care coverage and whether there is an
EAP (employee assistance program).
• Employers should try to remain empathetic; relaxing guidelines and policies. After all
there will be changes on a daily basis regarding schools, day care openings, elder care,
and other emergencies.
• Whenever possible, offer remote work.
• Mitigate risks. Don’t expect your employee to travel to unsafe places or place
themselves in situations that might expose them to contaminated colleagues or clients
or unsafe environments.
Employers can’t do away with all fears and dangers, but they can acknowledge them. Add more
hand sanitizers, disinfectants and Clorox wipes, reduce or eliminate penalties against necessary
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sick leaves and call outs, provide PPEs and host awareness sessions to educate and encourage
communication.
Miller, Stephen. (2020) Health Wellness and Leave Benefits Help Employees with Coronavirus. What to
tell employees who may have COVID-19. SHRM On line.
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/health-wellness-leavebenefits-help-employees-with-coronavirus.aspx
This is an in-depth article discussing various health benefit packages including FMLA, sick leave,
EAP, and other human resource issues. An excellent resource for questions on various programs
and administration.
Pascoe, Michaela and Parker, Alexandra. (2020). Is your mental health deteriorating during the
coronavirus pandemic. Here is what to look out for. Victoria University.
http://theconversation.com/is-your-mental-health-deteriorating-during-the-coronaviruspandemic-heres-what-to-look-out-for-134827
Even though this is an Australian publication, this is a useful article that does clearly describe the
signs of anxiety and depressions and various ways of dealing with them. The importance of
exercise, diet and sleep to maintaining mental health.
Ryan, Robin. (2020). How to manage workplace stress dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Forbes
online. https://www.forbes.com/sites/robinryan/2020/03/17/how-to-manage-workplacestress-dealing-with-the-coronavirus-pandemic/#65d7da6064d6
Organizational psychologist, Dr. Richard Citron, offers advice on dealing with stress in these tough
times.
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Corral your resilience to get control over your life and navigate through life in real-time.
Learn to work remotely. Reach out to employees and touch base with them. Managers
need to set expectations and employees need to develop a routine including time for lunch
or a walk outside.
Let your employees and your colleagues know you care and offer support to them and your
customers.
Self-Care is key. Take care of yourself including nutrition, sleep and exercise. According to
Erik Gabrielson, co-author of a new book, Fear Never Sleeps, “Fear is predominant in just
nearly everyone right now.”
Acknowledge that we can’t control everything happening around us, but we can get
ourselves to a place of acceptance.
Share something that you are grateful for. Help those who might need your assistance such
as neighbors or friends.
Act compassionately towards others. As a manager, realize that this might not be the time
to plow through work. Take time to be a champion for others in your organization and your
life.
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Wolf, Carolyn Reinach. (2020). Coronavirus stress can trigger those with mental illness. Caregivers must
stay calm, maintain routines/boundaries and reduce conflict. Psychology Today.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-desk-the-mental-healthlawyer/202003/coronavirus-stress-can-trigger-those-mental-illness
Stress is a well-known trigger for those with mental health illnesses and issues. Fortunately, there
are steps to help protect the mental health of struggling loved ones as well as those around them:
• Stay calm despite distressing news and stressful circumstances.
• Maintain routines, which provide structure and comfort.
• Observe spatial boundaries, take advantage of warmer weather and observe social
distancing.
• Reduce conflict. Keep your emotions in check!
Therapy is still available even though patients may be counseled by phone or video.
Watch for signs of distress and follow the guidelines for stability, structure, and calm within the
storm.
GENERAL BUSINESS TIPS FOR SMALL BUSINESS
https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/how-small-businesses-can-survive-the-coronavirus-outbreak
This article from Harvard Business School outlines specific areas that small businesses can focus on in
the short term. One favorite is the advice for the “Apples” of the world to pay their small business
vendors to help them with their cash flow during thehttps://www.linkedin.com/groups/3838609/
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