Management of Psychological Aspects of the Coronavirus

In the view of the World Health Organization, disaster is a serious and sudden interruption in the function of society that causes severe environmental, financial or life endangerment; the capacity of the injured and their resources are not enough to compensate for the injured. In Iran, thirty unexpected catastrophes out of forty natural disasters were seen. In these events, psychological and social issues were often neglected.

This Review article, assessed the literature as well as, the author’s personnel experiences in the COVID-19 pandemic and previous disasters in Iran.

In the case of the new pandemic of the COVID-19 virus or the Corona virus, stress and anxiety was high and may weaken the immune system and make one vulnerable to viral or psychosomatic disease. The vulnerability for psychological disorders such as phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic attack, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, recurrence or exacerbation of psychological disorders is high. It seems that psychological aspects of the disease need to be considered seriously.

Keeping calm, retaining a "positive psychology" in actions and behavior is important. Positive psychology includes having an optimistic view, high hopes , a self-care view and resiliency. Due to these issues, different roles can be rendered for different groups, including the role of the government and non-governmental organizations; in the psychological aspect, the role and responsibility of the media, the role and responsibility of the community are important. In disaster management, all governmental and non-governmental organizations need to do their duties properly, people need to get involved and participate as well. The armed forces can help control people, the media, research centers as well as the cultural, religious, and social institutions can help victims overcome the tragedy and adapt following the crisis.