Coronavirus has kickstarted the rise of cabin fever.

 

With a new Coronavirus variant, Omicron, quickly spreading, fears have arisen that the UK will be plunged into another lockdown by Christmas. This has sparked outrage and dismay in many people, with them claiming this would ruin their holidays once again, like it did last year in 2020. The rise of ‘cabin fever’ can also be attributed to the Coronavirus pandemic.

 

Cabin fever is a serious thing that happens when someone has been isolated or confined for long periods of time, causing them to become restless or irritable. One might experience symptoms such as insomnia, the urge to go outside in poor weather, depression or even paranoia. It can sometimes lead the sufferer to make irrational decisions that could be threaten their life; sometimes cabin fever can unfortunately culminate in suicide or self-harm. Cabin fever is not a new phenomenon and has been seen in the past. For example, cases have been reported in people who were doing long shifts underwater in a submarine, or living in solitary confinement, just to name a few circumstances.

 

More and more people have been suffering from cabin fever because of the pandemic as they have all been stuck at home, completely isolated from other people. A study from the National Office of Statistics showed that in lockdown, the number of lonely adults increased by 2.2% of the population (an increase of 1.1 million people). From such a staggering number, there would be a higher proportion of people suffering from cabin fever.

 

However, despite this pandemic  sometimes being dubbed the “greatest confinement in history”, there are ways to cope with this. It has been reported that spending time in nature, away from the indoors, significantly helps to limit the psychological effects of cabin fever. Connecting with other people (virtually in this day and age), getting into a routine and staying physically active have also been shown to help people manage cabin fever.

 

Cabin fever rates may rise if there is another lockdown, but hopefully we are all better prepared in the fight against it.