Mountain lions don't panic......and neither should you!

Right now people are freaking out they are constantly checking the news, social media and reading every article they can find on the Coronavirus, Covid 19.

It's not productive. 

How do I know? I did this after 9-11. I am from New York so the World Trade Center towers being attacked struck a nerve and I became a news junkie!

It took a while for me to realize this was not beneficial.

Now in the many years following I look to minimize my news intake --even now.

Why?

95% of the news and significant or has no impact on you.

Media sensationalizes everything making it far worse than it is.

Excessive fixation or worrying "about what might" happen is not productive. Now I'm not saying you bury your head in sand, educate yourself and take a deep breath you'll get through this.

Understanding what your actual risk is which currently is minimal, who besides your parents in your family might be a greater risk?

Being over 60 puts you at increased risk, so does having an underlying health condition to include heart issues, severe asthma, or anything tied to an autoimmune illness.

This also means if you don't have hand sanitizer so what-- do you have soap? Yes, you do, so you don't need hand sanitizer. Wash your hands with soap. Breathe brother, just breathe.

It's true many more die from the flu every year this is almost forgotten. But the Coronavirus is highly contagious and what makes this so problematic is that people are contagious before they show symptoms.

Do I think there is a lot of overreaction? Yes. There is no need to run out and buy all the toilet paper you can find. That is just fear-based behavior.

Is what is being done with shutting down large public gatherings and restaurants appropriate? Absolutely! The reality is the way this virus spreads it could overwhelm our healthcare system at which is would lead to a far higher mortality rate then should occur.

So while I don't wanna miss a concert, or a sporting event the cancellation of these events is not only logical it's crucial in containing the spread.

Without doing this we will ultimately have a spike of cases, which will overwhelm our health care system capacity. So what can we do?

Government recommendations are:

1. Avoiding crowds. As of yesterday, the White House recommended no groups of 10 people or more.

2. Wash your hands with soap and water often and for at least 20 seconds.

3. Maintain a distance of 6 ft from others.

4. Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or use inside of your elbow (throw tissues in trash).

5. Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily.

6. Click here for more detailed information about protecting yourself: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html

Some of you reading this may have a spouse who is stressed out or completely freaking out and overreacting to the situation.

This is where your calmness is more important than ever.

It doesn't matter that much of her stress and fear is not rational, it also doesn't mean that it isn't real to her.

So what can you do to help her?

1. Stay calm, you need to be her rock.

2. Don't let the monkey chatter in your head get out of control.

3. Minimize the consumption of news/media on the Coronavirus.

4. Ask her what would help her to feel more relaxed. Address it if you can.

5. Roll with the changes/challenges adapt, adjust, and overcome.

6. Carry on, you still meeting take care of business- at home and at/with work.

7. Breathe - - start now and begin each day with 5 deep breaths and a positive outlook.

8. Be a problem solver both at home and at work, not a doomsday prophet.

9. Think about how you can get more work done, or generate revenue and other ways if you were a gig worker or self-employed - even from home.

The issue is real, it is significant. We've been fortunate that there has been this kind of problem in the US and many parts of the world for an incredibly long time.

Mountain lions don't panic. Generals at war, the successful ones, don't panic they devise a plan to make adjustments as necessary and they execute the plan.

The way you behave and your attitude at home along with how you react will help set the tone for your family and keep everyone calm until this gets under control.

You got this!