An American Psychiatric Association survey last month found 36% of Americans said the coronavirus pandemic is having a serious impact on their mental health, while 59% said it is seriously impacting their daily lives.

James said unsettled routines have especially disrupted people’s sense of purpose, which is why people stuck at home should not suddenly expect themselves to be more productive.

“Be compassionate with yourself. Be kind to yourself,” she said. “Our expectations, we get married to them, and then when we don’t do them we get really disappointed. And I don’t think we have any room for that right now.”

James suggested people try something positive every day in the name of self-care, whether it is “one creative thing,” “one connective thing,” “one productive thing” or “one self-care thing.”

James said she told her sister, who lives in “the middle-of-nowhere, Michigan,” to do simple things like wash her hair and put on mascara, because they “may just make you feel more human.”

Mahmoud said it is important to process what is happening by using what he calls “radical acceptance.”

“We’re going to go through tough times, but there is an end to this. And at some point, it will be over,” he said.