The trauma left by Spain’s coronavirus lockdown: ‘I have never felt panic going outside until now’

Europe / Spain / 08/07/2020 / Authors: Noor mahtani and Miguel Ángel medina / Source: english.elpais.com

 

Although the confinement measures have ended, many people still feel anxious about leaving their homes and are worried about the risk of contagion.

 

“I have traveled around Africa, I have seen people die in the street, I have been in Colombia with the Zika [virus] and in Congo with Ebola, but I have never felt panic going outside like I do now,” says David Martín, a 48-year-old researcher. Martín, who is from Granada but lives in Madrid, has still not stepped outside even though Spain lifted the state of alarm on June 21. “I have recurring nightmares about diseases. I don’t go outside unless I am taking out the trash,” he adds. Psychologists refer to this as the fear of leaving a place after a long period of reclusion, and it can affect women and men of all ages.

“It is not a pathology or a disease but it could lead to one,” says psychologist Laura Croas, who is an expert in emotional engineering. “It is the consequence of an exceptional situation which in this case has been confinement,” she continues. For people who found a place of comfort and safety in their homes during the coronavirus lockdown, going outside and doing everyday activities like visiting friends, taking public transport or walking in busy places can be mission impossible. “It generates fear in those who are doing something for the first time,” Croas explains. To alleviate the feeling of being overwhelmed, she recommends taking small steps: going for a walk around the block, avoiding peak hours when there are more people on the street and meeting up with small groups.

Sometimes this fear can go further. According to a recent study by the Spanish medical insurance company Sanitas, 8% of Spaniards believe they will need psychological help to recover from the scars caused by the coronavirus lockdown, which was introduced in mid-March. The study, which interviewed a thousand people, showed that the state of alarm took a larger emotional toll on women, people under the age of 35, and those who have needed psychological help in the past.

Sweaty hands, anxiety and dizziness. This is what Cristina feels every time she has tried to go outside. She has still not managed it. “Confinement changed me. Just thinking about stepping out onto the street scares me,” she explains. According to Cristina, who preferred not to give her surname, the feelings of panic have even led to nightmares, and the 40-year-old has been seeing a psychologist remotely for three weeks to try to find a solution. “Now, with meditation and breathing exercises, I am getting better, but I think I will be confined for more time.”

Victoria Cadarso, an expert psychologist in trauma, says that in cases such as Cristina’s, it’s important to seek help. “It is the same with any other traumatic experience. Once the source is understood, it can be managed.” Last Wednesday, Cadarso gave a workshop on fear management to more than 2,300 people across the world. “It’s common behavior. There is not a clear profile of the people it affects, it depends on each person’s experience and level of resilience.”

“Until there’s a vaccine, I’m not going out”

Croas warns that young people and adolescents have replaced face-to-face social gatherings with video games and video calls as a result of this fear. Ángeles (fictitious name) has still not seen her friends or his family. “Until there’s a vaccine, I don’t think I’m going to go out. Perhaps later on I will start going out in open spaces, but I don’t see myself having dinner at a restaurant or going into a shop,” she says. The 27-year-old has not sought psychological help, but she is considering it. “I have had to go out three times to go to the doctor and all three times I got very nervous. I was very keen to get back home,” she explains. “When we were given permission to go out for walks, I tried to leave, but seeing so many people I felt overwhelmed. It was also very hard for me to breathe with the face mask on, so I decided I couldn’t go out again,” she adds.

The fear affects people of all ages. Pilar Orgaz, a 67-year-old retiree, does not want to leave her apartment in Villaverde. In three months, she has only left once to go to the hairdresser. But she believes it’s because she hasn’t wanted to. “I miss going out and seeing my friends, but I have more worries than a desire to go outside,” she says. Orgaz doesn’t even go out to go for a walk, instead using a treadmill at home. Her husband has tried to convince her to spend some days in their apartment by the beach, but she has refused. “What happens if they shut down the country again? Too many people get together too much, they’re not being careful anymore. There are definitely going to be outbreaks [of the coronavirus],” she says.

There are other people, like Daniel Vega, who have reconnected with their homes. The 36-year-old freelancer, who works in the audiovisual sector, has not left his Madrid apartment once since March 11, three days before the Spanish government declared a state of alarm in a bid to control the spread of the coronavirus. “I have rediscovered my home. Before I had two jobs and I didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t have time to stop and read a book or play a video game. I have also discovered the joy of cooking and eating with calm,” he says. His partner walks their dog and they buy their groceries online. “I have made the decision not to leave out of respect for my friends who are health workers. I am not afraid, but rather responsible. Many people are irresponsible and there will be [coronavirus] outbreaks. I will not have a problem going out when things begin to calm down,” he adds.

According to one survey, 8% of Spaniards believe they will need psychological help to recover from the scars caused by the coronavirus lockdown

María Zaragoza, a writer, says she has always liked to stay at home so the lockdown was not difficult for her. “I used to travel a lot and I always missed home. The shutdown due to the confinement measures has helped me a lot to work on a novel. I think people who like being at home have had an easier time. I have only gone out to take out the trash and go to the supermarket,” says the 37-year-old from Castilla-La Mancha. For now, she has decided to remain in her home in Castilleja de Guzmán in Seville and not to see friends or revive her social life. “I miss seeing my family. Before I traveled once a month to Campo de Criptana [in Ciudad Real] to see them. But I don’t feel like getting on a train with a face mask and without there being distance with other passengers,” she says.

David Martín has had the same problem. “I bought two tickets to visit my parents in Granada but in the end I had to cancel them because I didn’t think I was capable of going. I was scared of infecting them,” he explains. “I stopped watching the news to see if my mindset changed, but to no effect. The other day I saw that there were another 200 cases and that made me feel worse again.” Martín is waiting for something he can’t define to happen before he can return to his normal life. “I hope that then I can go out without any problem.”

English version by Melissa Kitson.

Source and image:  https://english.elpais.com/society/2020-07-02/the-trauma-left-by-spains-coronavirus-lockdown-i-have-never-felt-panic-going-outside-until-now.html

Comparte este contenido:

Spain sees rise in air pollution as coronavirus lockdown eases

Europe / Spain / 10/06/2020 / Author: Manuel Planelles / Source: english.elpais.com

Although levels remain below average, a spike in nitrogen dioxide has been detected as the country relaxes its confinement measures.

There has been a historic fall in air pollution as a result of the coronavirus crisis, just as there has been a historic global shutdown of economic activity. In Spain, pollution levels plummeted almost overnight when the government declared a state of alarm on March 14 and introduced strict confinement measures in a bid to curb the coronavirus outbreak.

In the first three weeks of the lockdown, the concentration of nitrogen dioxide – which is closely linked to car fumes – fell more than 50% in the air-monitoring stations across the country.

In the first week of June, the average concentration of nitrogen dioxide was 32% less than the average from the same period over the last four years.

But as Spain began to deescalate the confinement measures, more traffic has returned to the roads, and nitrogen dioxide levels are once again on the rise. This increase was calculated by EL PAÍS based on the data from air-monitoring centers from the 15 most populous cities in Spain, which are home to more than 10.7 million people, or around one fourth of the total population.

Since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, the European Environment Agency (EEA) has been compiling and sharing the weekly evolution of several pollutants as recorded by around 3,000 air-monitoring centers in the European Union. Thanks to the work of the EEA, it is possible to follow the changes in air-pollution levels during the crisis.

These changes are most apparent in the fluctuating levels of nitrogen dioxide, a harmful composite that can cause respiratory, circulatory and immunological problems. Given the pollutant is closely linked to traffic in cities, it is easy to see the connection between the fall in emissions and the coronavirus lockdown. But, as with all pollutants, meteorological conditions also affect its concentration. According to the EEA, air pollution causes 400,000 premature deaths in Spain every year.

During the first four weeks of confinement, there was a sudden drop in the level of nitrogen dioxide in Spain. Emissions of the pollutant fell to their lowest level in the week between April 6 and 12. The average concentration of nitrogen dioxide, as recorded in the 15 Spanish cities, plummeted nearly 65% compared to the average of the same week from the last four years (2016-2019). After that week, levels began to plateau, before rising again during May 11 and 17.

The A-1 highway in Madrid region during the coronavirus lockdown.
The A-1 highway in Madrid region during the coronavirus lockdown.LUIS SEVILLANO

Despite this increase, the concentration of nitrogen dioxide in Spain remains well below average and far from what was recorded before the coronavirus lockdown was introduced. In the first week of June, with all of the country deescalating the confinement measures, the average concentration of the pollutant was 14.4 micrograms per cubic meter, based on the records from the 15 air-monitoring stations. This is 32% less than the average from the same period over the last four years.

Adrián Fernández, the head of mobility at Greenpeace Spain, explains that while the entire country began easing the lockdown measures on May 25, most schools and educational facilities remain closed and many employees continue to work remotely, meaning there has been less traffic on the roads.

“This crisis should not mean that measures against the most polluting forms of transportation are held back,” he warned.

Miguel Ángel Ceballo, an air-quality expert at the environment group Ecologists in Action, adds that the coronavirus crisis has also “stigmatized public transportation,” with many fearing contagion.

Financial aid for automobile sector

On May 31, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of the Socialist Party (PSOE) announced a plan to provide financial aid to the automobile sector. But according to Carlos Bravo, an expert in energy from the conservation association Salvia, this initiative could encourage the sale of gasoline and diesel cars.

Salvia, and other environmental groups including the Renewable Energy Foundation (FR), have come together to call for the “efficient and responsible use” of public funds and for the government plan to focus “primarily on boosting electromobility.” According to Bravo, “the true transformation will happen by supporting electric and hybrid cars, which are the ones that really reduce pollution and carbon dioxide emissions.”

The expert, who also expressed concern about the “uptick in the use of private vehicles” in Spain, said that Germany is leading the way with a multimillion-euro recovery plan that only includes direct aid for the purchases of electric cars. “If Spain wants to have a future in this industry, it must back electromobility,” explains Bravo.

When Sánchez announced the plan, he did not specify whether it would include aid to buy gasoline cars. But one top official in the Industry Ministry has said that the plan should be extended to these types of vehicles, as has been requested by the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (Anfac). Before the prime minister’s announcement, the Ecological Transition Ministry was finalizing the approval of a €65-million aid plan exclusively for electric cars.

 

Source and image:     https://english.elpais.com/society/2020-06-09/spain-sees-rise-in-air-pollution-as-coronavirus-lockdown-eases.html

English version by Melissa Kitson.

Comparte este contenido: