Banish Fear, Panic, Ripple Effect, Mass Hysteria and Chaos During the Global Pandemic

In difficult times, there should be no police brutality. Instead, kindness, care and compassion, are needed during the pandemic period. Let’s banish fear, panic, the ripple effect, mass hysteria and chaos, reports Tabussum from Dacca, exclusively for Diferent Truths.   

“Fear is only as deep as the mind allows.” ~  Japanese Proverb

We are living in uncertain times. We have fears, and some of us are panicked. We know that social distancing or self-isolation are not the options for daily wagers. But the better choice right now is to stay calm by staying at home and maintaining social distancing. Following government instructions. I know it is easy for a writer like me to write on my laptop on a Friday morning, in a comfortable room. Where somewhere a daily wager is thinking about how he is going to survive the day with other mouths to feed. Maybe he is thinking of going to the house of worship. Again, perhaps he is scared of police brutality to go out. The poor do not understand what is happening and why it is happening. Even 20 days ago, the nation was about to celebrate the 100 birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, Bongo Bondhu Sheikh Mujib. The have-not were expecting free good meals. What went wrong? What is this virus? We don’t have answers.

Even 20 days ago, the nation was about to celebrate the 100 birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, Bongo Bondhu Sheikh Mujib. The have-not were expecting free good meals. What went wrong? What is this virus? We don’t have answers.

We all have different kinds of mindsets. It determines how we interpret and respond to situations. If we are engulfed by fear, then we might feel panic. Stephen King rightly said, “Panic is highly contagious, especially in situations when nothing is known and everything is in flux.” Then comes the possibility of the ripple effect. There are two kinds of ripple effect as identified by the psychologists and behavioural scientists, positive and negative.

The negative ripple effect is felt when an individual triggers emotions (read fear psychosis) in others. It is also known as the unified/group response to change. It involves the transfer of emotions among individuals within a group. If we have a large group of people with the ripple effect of fear, it might lead to mass hysteria or in the worst-case scenario, a chaos.

When the food distribution for the poor is stopped, things can get worse. How long can middle-income countries like ours distribute food? The responsibility depends not only on the government.

People are buying food and essentials and storing. We have already witnessed it around the world. When the food distribution for the poor is stopped, things can

get worse. How long can middle-income countries like ours distribute food? The responsibility depends not only on the government. Big corporate houses can donate as a part of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). The religious donations, regardless of any particular religion, can be given to the charitable organisations, who are in charge of food, mask, soap, sanitizer distribution.

We need to report against fake news. We must stop spreading rumours. Tittle-tattle can have a swift ripple effect, and when the ball is rolling very fast, it kick-starts a flood of moral destruction. It, therefore, may affect the minds’ setups. And these might be fearful and panicked. We need to be in social media to spread positive vibes, rather than the negative ones. It is essential to provide public information reasonably. Suppressing information may give birth to rumours. It is the high time for political parties to forget their difference of opinions and ideologies. All political parties should extend their hands of co-operation to the government because there can be no more significant ideology than saving the humanity.

Government officials like Sayma must understand that Bangladesh is the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. People are not government official’s servants. Indeed, we are not living in the colonial era. Thankfully, she was withdrawn by the government.

Police brutality should not be encouraged. Government officials should behave appropriately —for example, Sayma Hasan. An executive magistrate and assistant commissioner (land) of Monirampur, in Jessore, conducted drives in different areas in the Upazila on March 27, Friday afternoon. During her ride, the mobile court punished three elderly men. She punished three older adults by holding their ears with their hands. She even took the photos and posted on social media. Government officials like Sayma must understand that Bangladesh is the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. People are not government official’s servants. Indeed, we are not living in the colonial era. Thankfully, she was withdrawn by the government. Such behaviour can also create agitation and trigger the ripple effect of anger leading to the disorder in the country.

We need to stay calm and be patient. We need to stop overthinking. A reminder from Seneca “We are more often frightened than hurt; we suffer more from imagination than from reality.”

Sometimes, overthinking makes the problem bigger and scarier than it is.

We should use essential daily items, thoughtfully and calculatingly. We need to extend our hands of help to our neighbours. We need to buy at such a rate so that other people can also buy. There is no need to create a stockout situation. We also need to help our household workers with kindness. And let us not forget the stray cats and dogs on the streets with compassion. They have lives too. If we have a little bit of waste, why not give these to the innocent mute, helpless creatures? These are all about kindness, caring and compassion, which are needed in the hard times like this pandemic period rather than fear, panic, the ripple effect, mass hysteria and chaos.

We can turn the possibility of the adverse ripple effect into a positive one by brightening up someone’s day — a smile or a kind word via message, or the generous actions of a stranger. If you see an impoverished man sitting outside your house, wear a mask and give him something.

We can turn the possibility of the adverse ripple effect into a positive one by brightening up someone’s day — a smile or a kind word via message, or the generous actions of a stranger. If you see an impoverished man sitting outside your house, wear a mask and give him something. It can be a mask or a piece of bread. If not a mask or a portion of bread then offer your basic knowledge about COVID-19 and request him to be patient. The small things, the tiny details, these are the things that matter in life.

The little glint in the eyes, the curve of a lip, nod of a head, the wave of a hand from a roof to your neighbour, while maintaining social distancing can make a difference. These mean a lot when people are experiencing isolation. Such minuscule movements have colossal positive ripple effects in our lives in such hard times during COVID -19 pandemic.

Photo from the internet.