Swift: Many of us have exhausted our 'surge capacity.' Here's why. - Duluth News Tribune

Remember when we were all bracing for the coronavirus?

We would all get through this thing together. We were pasting cute little hearts on our windows and whipping up masks on our home Singers to help out medical personnel. As on-the-go, work-obsessed, achievement-minded Americans, we actually all agreed to stay home, as a nation, to keep this lurking enemy at bay.

And then our unity and resilience began to crack. We received mixed messages. We stopped trusting. We started blaming. We were filled with exhaustion and uncertainty and fear. Our fear turned to anger, paranoia and hopelessness. With no similar event in our lifetimes to compare this to, our brains flailed about, trying to make sense of an ambiguous threat.

As someone with an ADHD brain, I initially thrived in this environment. My anxiety surged, but — for a short time, at least — it turned into adrenaline. I was focused, amped up, able to leap tall writing assignments and treacherous blogs with a single bound.

But as this “sprint” turned into a marathon, I struggled. I felt a constant, gnawing, low-level anxiousness, which spiked into anger when I watched the news. Initially pumped about teleworking, I could no longer differentiate between weekends and weekdays. T.G.I.F. now meant... what? More Netflix? More time beating myself up because I couldn’t find the energy to clean my house? Perhaps a scintillating session with Instacart? More Rip Van Winkle-worthy naps, which left me even more exhausted?

Then a headline on the website Medium caught my eye. “Your ‘surge capacity’ is depleted,” it read. “It’s why you feel awful.”

I proceeded to read about... me. And just about every person I know.

The author interviewed University of Minnesota psychologist Ann Masten, who defined surge capacity as a collection of mental and physical adaptive systems that humans tap into for short-term survival in acutely stressful situations, such as natural disasters. But this natural disaster won’t blow in and out like a hurricane. Instead, it’s stretching on and on and on — showing us a horizon of murky uncertainty.

And if you’re a take-charge control freak (and who isn’t?), that can be very frightening.

When surge capacity is depleted, it needs to be renewed, Masten says in the article. Masten and several other mental-health professionals offered ideas on how to do this.

• Stop judging yourself. This “new normal” (ugh, sorry) is really an indefinite uncertainty that has affected every single one of the systems we rely on. As Masten said: “Why do you think you should be used to this by now? We’re all beginners at this. It’s expecting a lot to think we’d be managing this really well.” This means it’s OK to expect a little less from yourself and to show some self-compassion. So, yes, it’s OK to play “Animal Crossing.”
• Recognize that this is grief. We have lost so much. Big things like a country that feels stable and strong. Little things like the ability to go out for coffee with a friend. We are grieving as a nation, and each one of us is in some different stage of that grief, whether that is anger, bargaining, depression or something else.
• Try radical acceptance. There’s no other way to spin it: It’s an awful and frustrating time right now, and it is making everyone’s life harder. That means accepting in your bones that this may be a tough day, and there may be many more ahead. But acceptance does not mean giving up. “It means not resisting or fighting reality so that you can apply your energy elsewhere,” says Dr. Michael Maddaus of the University of Minnesota. “It allows you to step into a more spacious mental space that allows you to do things that are constructive instead of being mired in a state of psychological torment.”
• Build up your resilience bank account. We would never drive our car without changing the oil, but we seem to expect our bodies to run forever without giving them what they need to thrive. Adequate sleep, gentle exercise and nutritious food play a bigger role than we realize in keeping us emotionally, mentally and physically strong. If we can occasionally work in gratitude, connection with others who make us laugh and meditation, that’s even more “bucks” in our resilience bank.
• Get your hands dirty. The term “self-care” makes people cringe these days, as so many things we do to pamper ourselves — shopping, getting nails done, attending concerts — are harder. “There are two ways the brain deals with the world: the future and things we need to go after, and the here and now, seeing things and touching things,” Maddaus says. “Rather than being at the mercy of what’s going on, we can use the elements of our natural reward system and construct things to do that are good no matter what.” This is why people are rediscovering basic pursuits — redecorating the living room, trying art projects, baking bread, digging in the garden, cooking a real meal ­— can feel so rewarding right now. Little rituals like this involve creativity, planning and careful execution, which can keep our brains focused on the constructive.
• Help someone else. The easiest way to take our minds off our own problems is to reach out and help someone else. It works. Try it.

Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota is hosting the Project Renew call line for anyone affected by COVID-19. The number is 701-223-1510, and it is staffed 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

ARCHIVE: Read more of Tammy Swift's columns

Readers can reach columnist Tammy Swift at tswiftsletten@gmail.com.

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Swift: Many of us have exhausted our 'surge capacity.' Here's why. - Duluth News Tribune
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