Psychologist shares how to handle constant record-breaking Covid news

COLUMBUS — Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced 343 new hospitalizations in the last 24 hours. He also said eight out of the 10 highest new hospitalization days have come in the last 10 days. As Ohio sees these numbers go up, a Centerville psychologist warns, people should not panic, but they also should not become numb to the numbers.

“I think it’s finding that balance between not being panicked every time we hear that there’s a record being broken, but also not getting numb to it either,” Dr. Meredith Glick Brinegar said.

Though she recognizes people will get used to the scary statistics, she said people still need to maintain a healthy appreciation for how the virus is spreading.

“We’re all probably going to habituate a little bit to it and get used to it, but to still take it seriously, to still be wearing our masks, to still be conscious of how we gather together,” Dr. Glick Brinegar said.

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To avoid becoming desensitized to the information, people should pay attention to the amount they are taking in.

“Continue to read or to watch the news again in moderate doses,” Dr. Glick Brinegar said. “We don’t want to be obsessed with it, and spending too much time focused on it. But I think we don’t want to just tune it out.”

Instead, she said to focus on the people who have had the virus and their experiences.

“The numbers matter to show trends, but again, I think it’s the human experience, the stories that matter even more than the numbers,” Dr. Glick Brinegar said.

She said that includes stories of survival.

“I think it’s important to show the whole range, to show that we do need to take this seriously, but we also don’t need to be completely panicked and to cut off all social contact either,” Dr. Glick Brinegar said.

Cox Media Group