코로나19 걱정 가장 많이 하는 나라 한국,..심리 방역 도움되지만 지나칠 경우 우울증 유발할수도<br /><br />Exactly 6 months ago, back on March 11th, the World Health Organization declared that the outbreak of COVID-19 had become a pandemic.<br />It is still affecting all parts of the world,..but people in South Korea, despite living in a country with very few cases, have been found to be most concerned about the pandemic.<br />Lee Kyung-eun tells us more.<br />"South Korea's battle against COVID-19 began in January,…two months before the WHO declared it a pandemic.<br />It has lasted for nine months now,...and I am out on the streets to ask people how they are coping with it."<br />"When the country was reporting one or two cases, I was so scared I just stayed home for months. But now, I can't think of a world free from masks."<br />"You can't stop exercising, so I wake up earlier to run when people are not around... and for the rest of the day, I am just stuck at home."<br />"I am kind of used to the restrictions now. It also has some positives, because I go home early and save money."<br />People seem to have found ways to live "with Corona",...but their levels of concern remain high.<br />U.S.-based Pew Research surveyed what 14 advanced countries saw as their greatest national threat, with infectious diseases topping many of their answers.<br />For South Korea, a whopping 89 percent of people answered pandemic, the highest among the countries surveyed.<br />Korea also has the most people who say that their daily life has changed due to COVID-19.<br />"Maybe, it's because information spreads very fast in Korea's densely populated and wired society. But the problem is the information also includes fake news that causes fear."<br />This cautious attitude could contribute to the country's virus prevention efforts, but it could have negative side effects.<br />"Humans are fundamentally optimistic you don't get on a bus worrying that it could get in an accident. But COVID-19 makes you nervous all day,... which can give a lot of stress and depression. Young kids can feel it even more due to parents preventing them from going out."<br />But on the bright side, this experience could help them grow stronger.<br />For that to happen, it is important that they are given accurate information and hopeful messages that "we can overcome this."<br />Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.<br />
