Anxiety from covid….is this normal

[elmo89]

So i’ve had covid twice now and I fully understand that this virus isnt going away and it is something we have to live with however the anxiety from it seems to be taking over my thoughts and day to day living.
For example I went out last night for a family member’s birthday for dinner and drinks. I really enjoyed myself while out and danced beside my table,ordered a couple drinks up at the bar etc. Now im wracked with guilt incase i’ve caught covid and bring it home to my two children. To the point I’m sitting here googling covid and scared to go too close to them incase I have got it and will pass it on. Even though I know my son is in school Monday to Friday mixing with 30 children in his class unmasked I feel real guilt incase it’s me who brings covid into our home.
Am i reasonable to be feeling so guilty for enjoying myself?? or is this fear gone too far and do I need to speak to someone??

It's not super unusual but it's not healthy (not good for you).

Have you had anxiety before & did therapy help you get over it?

Ive had councilling for previous eating disorder etc so I have struggled with anxiety and depression for quite some time.
But I’m more wondering is it normal for me to feel so guilty? Like I actually feel like a bad mum for going out and having what would have been just a normal night out before all this covid!

That word you're using, "normal" , is completely loaded, esp. on MN. If I said that "Downs Syndrome is not normal" (or even worse, abnormal) people go apeshit because they assume & presume that I meant "shouldn't be allowed to exist", a meaning I never had in my head until MN deleted my post & everyone screeched at me-- . It's a word I steadfastly try to avoid ever using again on these fora.

Anyway, without me knowing what the word "normal" means to you -- I'm dancing around it refusing to touch. I would only say that it's not uncommon to have mixed feelings about activities that were ordinary socialising before Covid, and not know what is/was ok risk to take.

What are you worried about? You a had it twice and everyone's fine.. I'm sure everyone would still be fine if you did catch it again. Enjoy yourself

The media is to blame for your anxiety not covid

‘Normal’ in this instance is really unhelpful I believe.

What is normal from my perspective will not necessarily match what is normal from your perspective.

Personally, I do not understand your anxiety or guilt around covid, especially since you have tested positive twice already. I would slightly understand it more if you have never had covid before, but only slightly.

However, I am not you and I will never say that your feelings are wrong.

Would you like help managing your anxiety? Do you think it would help?

The second time we got covid was a week after I had my second born and he also got it so I think that’s where some of the guilt stems from as he was so little and I didnt do enough to protect him from it as we caught it from a visitor to the house who then became unwell and tested positive a few days later

Elmo, I think it's important to realise that the government, taking instruction from psychologists, have tried very hard to influence public behaviour during the pandemic. They have intentionally introduced messaging that evokes feelings of shame and fear to try to gain compliance.

If you are already predisposed towards anxiety, it could be that such messages really get under your skin. Once you are conditioned to feel a certain way, it can be difficult to stop, but, eventually, if the message is no longer reinforced by authority figures, you'll start to feel less guilty about letting your guard down.

back to my soapbox... I find that covid situation has created perceived tribes of 'good' and 'bad' people. How you define the tribe membership depends on what you perceive as the worst dangers... but the definitions I encounter the most are based on premise that "Good" people do not catch Covid unless someone (probably a bad person) did something reckless. So if you got covid, that is someone's "fault", not only is someone to blame, but to reassure yourself you're a "good person", you must find someone to blame when an outcome happens you don't like or are merely afraid might happen -- in this case OP is trying to decide whether to blame herself. (*) Some people instinctively believe that guilt is redemptive.

What I want to say is "Cut it out!" Covid happens to good or bad people and it was no one's fault or God's decision who to punish/reward or any big reason why these things happen to individuals. Thanks goodness babies & children are so resistant to severe illness, is the other important fact to value.

(*) A conspiracy theorist might blame Big Pharma for hiding the Covid cure, a Libertarian might blame hysterical scare-mongerers for making people anxiety-ridden wrecks, etc.

@OutwiththeOutCrowd

Elmo, I think it's important to realise that the government, taking instruction from psychologists, have tried very hard to influence public behaviour during the pandemic. They have intentionally introduced messaging that evokes feelings of shame and fear to try to gain compliance.

If you are already predisposed towards anxiety, it could be that such messages really get under your skin. Once you are conditioned to feel a certain way, it can be difficult to stop, but, eventually, if the message is no longer reinforced by authority figures, you'll start to feel less guilty about letting your guard down.

Thank you your reply makes a lot of sense and was helpful in understanding why I might feel this way!