Dear Sarahbelle,
Welcome to Beyond Blue and well done for reaching out.
I would like to recommend, if you haven't already, to talk to your doctor. If you are having symptoms of COVID-19 then you can get tested to see if you have it or not. It's better to be armed with the facts, rather than worrying about 'what if'.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the number of people who are infected, percentage wise, is actually only about 0.02% of the population. And I have just now heard our PM say that two thirds of those who have had it, have already recovered. for most, it's a mild illness and recovery is good.
But yeah, I hear you. It's hard sometimes not be worried about it. Especially if you are not armed with the facts.
I'd like to suggest that you LIMIT the amount of news you watch to no more than 30 minutes a day, at most. Make sure you are getting some regular exercise, assuming you are well enough to do that. Make sure you are keeping in contact with your friends and family via the phone, and video calls. Sending the odd text message is not really enough. People need to hear each other's voices, and to see each others faces, so if you haven't been doing that, I suggest you call someone just to have a chat and catch up with their voice and face, to do that. And also, if you have any kind of a hobby, get into that too!
And the next time your head wants to terrorise you with awful thoughts, tell it "thanks for sharing, but you've had your turn. Now it's MY TURN to be well, and look after myself."
There's also a website called Mood Gym - https://moodgym.com.au/home - which you may find helpful too. "Moodgym is like an interactive self-help book which helps you to learn and practise skills which
can help to prevent and manage symptoms of depression and anxiety."
In the meantime, you are welcome here anytime, as much as you like. We are all in this together, and I for one am happy to help out in any way I can. Most important thing to remember is that THIS TOO SHALL PASS. We won't be socially isolating forever. This WILL pass.
Take care. I'll be thinking of you. xo