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Results and findings

Fear: all participants experienced fear around cleanliness, hygiene and death.

• cleanliness: even though some participants already used hand sanitiser or washed their hands frequently, there was a dramatic increase in this during the pandemic
• hygiene: levels of hygiene also increased. One participant detailed how they would now clean everything they purchased in order to feel comfortable enough to have it in their home
• death: participants had an overwhelming fear of infecting others and possible death, although not explicit in our study, this appeared to be implied

Avoidance: participants went out of their way to avoid anything that could put them at a greater risk of catching or spreading COVID-19.

• socialising: participants struggled to socialise with their peers, which in turn lead to a lack of engagement and isolation from society and their loved ones
• public transport: 50% of participants vocalised taking longer journeys and going out of their way to actively avoid being in contact with others
• touch: The awareness of touch and the germs that may be present on handrails, buttons and produce, was a reoccurring issue for almost all of the participants which resulted in an assessment of whether or not to touch things and if it was necessary to do so, how to manage their response to this

Lack of Safety: participants had an overall fear of whether they were doing the right thing and if what they were being told was even correct.

• misinformation: it appeared that there was a lack of trust of knowing who and where to turn to for accurate information about the pandemic and its restrictions and how to manage it
• guidelines: Government guidelines provided both relief and confusion for our participants. All participants stated that they adhered to the guidelines, but their awareness of them at times made them more anxious when they witnessed others who were not complying with the guidelines

Management of Symptoms: management of symptoms varied from participants not doing anything at all about it and just hoping it would pass, to talking to friends and family or actively seeking out a therapeutic alliance to ease their symptoms. Most participants suggested that if their symptoms of anxiety were to continue or worsen, therapeutic interventions would be something they would consider.

• vaccination: the introduction of the COVID-19 vaccination programme helped to alleviate some of the symptoms of anxiety for our participants and helped 50% of participants to feel more relaxed
• therapy: one participant mentioned therapy as a possible future measure they would utilise for tackling their symptoms if they were to persist or increase in the future. Which suggested that therapy had already been considered and was the next logical step in their treatment plan. However, another participant stated that they probably would not seek out therapy or do anything at all
• talking to loved ones: it appeared that our participants found talking to be of assistance when feeling anxious and that it provided them with a distraction from how they were feeling in the moment
• other coping strategies: when asked about strategies and management, the participants’ answers varied from avoiding the cause of anxiety altogether, to finding exercises that could be used as the anxiety appeared