HANDLING THE LOCKDOWN
Each individual has a unique nature and perceives the world in his or her own way. Similarly, the world perceives them, with their own knowledge about them (sometimes less) and builds an impression of each other in this manner. In these challenging times during the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, introverts and extroverts are handling it very differently.
According to Dr. Mamta Shah, Clinical psychologist and psychotherapist, “Lockdown in today's pandemic of COVID -19 is an emergency protocol to have people stay in their homes, to help slow down the transfer of the virus from person to person. It's difficult as people are social beings who live in a community consisting of family, relatives, friends, colleagues, etc. We constantly have interactions with each other by visiting homes, offices, cafes, etc. Frustrations and irritations grow when we are not able to do so. Mere tele chatting or video chatting is not enough and can make us feel isolated. But not everyone feels this way. Some of us are introverts, some extroverts and some in between. The lockdown makes it challenging for extroverts, who love to socialise in group settings. That being said, it can also pose difficulties for introverts."
She goes on to say that, “Introverts are people who tend to follow a quiet routine and feel comfort in it. With this pandemic, routines have gone for a toss and living day to day with changing rules and regulations can pose a threat for introverts. On the bright side, introverts feel comfort in not being pressurised to socialise. They have a higher resilience in withstanding social isolation and can endure long stretches of time on their own. They may even feel relieved as they can enjoy activities that require only one person, e.g. reading, solving puzzles, writing, watching movies, cooking, playing video games etc. In contrast, extroverts, have a strong need and desire for constant social stimulation and interaction. Social interaction and stimulation is a basic survival need for them, like water and food.”
On the other hand we have a different view from Dr. Samir Parikh, Psychiatrist and Director Fortis National Mental Health Program. He says “We can’t generalize how people would cope with the stress of the lockdown simply based on one personality trait. While some people may have a tendency towards being more introverted or extroverted, their capacity to cope with stress would depend on multiple factors including their support systems, personal demands and life experiences. It’s important for all of us at the time to reach out and talk to someone and seek help to cope with this situation to be more resilient in these times.”
Dr Niru Kumar, Life and Executive Coach, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant and Founder, Ask Insights feels that, “It depends upon the industry and nature of work. In my coaching and counselling practice I am seeing two trends. Those who do not have to have a lot of virtual interaction are in fact happier. They don’t have people pushing them to socialise more, go out more etc. Many students, artists writers and homemakers fall in this category. There are others who are now supposed to be making an impact virtually are finding it very hard. They are finding it even more difficult to get their voice in. This is leading to job insecurity and anxiety. Many corporate employees fall in this group.”
Looking at it from an even broader perspective, “These times are unique and many people are still discovering new ways of living and interacting with each other. Its seen that people who were introverts are also wanting to get out of homes because of frustration of being forced to constantly interact with family members who are now hovering around them all the time, and extroverts equally are craving for their usual social interaction which they are missing. Though many extroverts have learnt a new aspect of their personality of being content staying at home, as others are equally in the same boat. It is all about the theory of relativity, which says you measure your standards only compared to the standards of others. Also, the fear of the disease, prevails above all. People want to keep themselves safe, and that is the reason, for the first time we see self constraint in people, at least in India. The World Health Organization has predicted a global epidemic of anxiety after the physical threat of disease subsides. The reasons could be many, including the anxiety of apprehension of the future; the fear of disease itself; grief of losing someone known; fear of economic repercussions; fear of loss of job; actual loss of jobs; financial losses and many more. There are many new things that people are discovering about themselves and their families but for sure, the world will never be the same again,” says Dr Akshay Kumar, Clinical psychologist, Consultant and Head of Department, Artemis hospital and Director, Ask Insights.
