What can happen if you spend too much time at home?
Spending a lot of time at home affects your mood./ Photo: Bridget Jones’s Diary.
Body
You don’t have to develop cabin fever. Depriving yourself of sunlight will cause your vitamin D levels to drop, which will be very harmful in the long run.
Marcos Lopez
January 28, 2024 / 12:34 pm
You don’t need to go outside. You work from home, do all your shopping online, and have a treadmill or weights to lift for your workout. Also a soft sofa and a large collection of books. Why are you leaving when it’s so cold outside? Everyone imposes something on themselves voluntary confinement random weekends to declutter the house and isolate yourself from the outside world. But be careful: when those few days turn into weeks and even months, you are putting your physical and mental health at risk.
Already in the early 20th century, Americans coined the term “cabin fever” to describe the mental and emotional condition suffered by people sentenced to prison. insulation and loneliness in winter, while they are harsh, from which the north of their country suffers. But each person is different, and you don’t have to stay cooped up for so long to develop this psychological condition – unlike agoraphobia, it is not a disease or a mental disorder.
These are the consequences of self-isolation for no reason.
Vitamin D deficiency
Depriving yourself of sunlight has among the most immediate consequences a deficiency of vitamin D. Which in the long run has very harmful consequences. Given its role in the absorption of calcium needed by both bones and muscles, as well as other functions such as blood pressure control, regulation of the immune response and hormonal system, this vitamin is absolutely essential for the body.
Therefore, the key is in the royal star. However, paradoxically, Spain, Portugal and Italy are at the top of the European countries with the highest scores avitaminosis d. In the center and north of the old continent they are more than accustomed to adding supplements of this vitamin in many of your products. Not so in the south: go outside and take a sunbath – even if it is hidden behind the clouds.
Sleep problems and bad mood
You take a pill prescribed by your doctor that helps you keep your vitamin D levels under control, so you insist on staying home. And over time you become more and more irritable and tired. You have trouble sleeping and not only do you lose motivation, but you become completely bored.
Who suffered the most?
This can happen to anyone. No one is immune from this cabin fever. In fact, it seems that the people most likely to suffer from this are people with very stressful job, who live alone and have mental health problems. Also extrovertsas a rule, more dependent on social relationships.
put an end to this
Do you have symptoms? It’s time to fix them:
- Set a daily routine it stimulates you physically and mentally and forces you to have minimal social contact. It’s as simple as scheduling a video call to discuss the latest news with a friend or the book you just read. Every two or three days and always at the same time. The days of waiting will fly by and your mood will improve.
- Let go of the negativity. You don’t see yourself being able to go outside, which means you give up many of the activities that bring you pleasure. But there are still many positive things in your life. Take a notepad and write them down. Little by little you will get rid of your pessimism.
- Be creative. Get out your watercolors, put on an apron or sharpen your pencil, and start writing. Everything will benefit the victory over boredom.
- Everything has a remedy. Believe it or not, this is a temporary situation. It may not end tomorrow or even in a couple of days, but don’t be discouraged. Moreover, every cloud has a silver lining, and if you look at the situation with optimism, you will learn a valuable lesson and become stronger.