我们的时间观念正在被扰乱

我们的时间观念正在被扰乱

"What day is it, again?"

“再说一遍，今天是星期几?”

It's become a common refrain during the coronavirus pandemic, a reflection of both how all of the days seem to blur together and how lately, we find ourselves forgetting even the simplest of details.

在冠状病毒大流行期间，这已经成为一种常见的重复，反映了所有的日子是如何模糊在一起的，以及最近，我们发现自己甚至忘记了最简单的细节。

Our internal clocks are shot. There are no weekdays, or weekends. There is only yesterday, today and tomorrow.

我们的生物钟被打乱了。没有工作日，也没有周末。只有昨天、今天和明天。

Along with these feelings of disorientation, it may seem like it's getting harder to concentrate and taking longer to complete tasks, as if our brains are just working more slowly.

伴随着这些迷失方向的感觉，我们似乎越来越难以集中注意力，完成任务的时间也越来越长，就好像我们的大脑运转得越来越慢。

If it feels like your brain is turning into mush, you're not alone. Experts say it all has to do with how the pandemic is affecting our cognitive health -- meaning, our ability to clearly think, learn and remember.

如果你感觉你的大脑正在变得一团糟，你并不孤单。专家表示，这一切都与大流行如何影响我们的认知健康有关，也就是说，我们清晰思考、学习和记忆的能力。

"It is a perfect storm between changes in environment and increases in cognitive stress," said Elissa Epel, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. "And then on top of that, most of us are not getting the quality sleep that we used to."

加州大学旧金山分校的精神病学教授埃莉萨·埃佩尔说，“这是一场完美风暴，它夹在环境变化和认知压力的增加之间。”“最重要的是，我们大多数人的睡眠质量都不如以前。”

Here's what's going on, and what we can do about it.

这是正在发生的事情，我们可以做些什么。

Our usual routines are gone

我们的日常生活已经消失了

Much like our bodies depend on environmental cues like sunlight to regulate our circadian rhythms, they also rely on physical and social cues, explains Epel.

埃佩尔解释说，就像我们的身体依赖阳光等环境信号来调节昼夜节律一样，它们也依赖于身体和社会信号。

Those cues include routines like morning and evening commutes, set mealtimes or weekly religious services that help us keep track of what day it is.

这些提示包括像早晨和晚上的通勤，固定的用餐时间或每周的宗教仪式，帮助我们了解今天是什么日子。

For those confined to our homes, those routines have largely disappeared. Days have lost their usual structure, meaning once-clear boundaries are now blurred.

对于那些被限制在家里的人来说，这些日常生活基本上已经消失了。日子已经失去了它们通常的结构，这意味着曾经清晰的界限现在变得模糊。

We're multitasking a lot more

我们要做更多的多重任务

Another reason we can't keep track of the days?

另一个我们记不住日子的原因是什么?

We're multitasking a lot more. Many people are finding themselves balancing multiple responsibilities, such as homeschooling children or caring for an elderly family member -- all while holding down a full-time job or coping with the stress of a layoff.

我们要做更多的多任务处理。许多人发现自己要同时兼顾多项责任，比如在家辅导孩子或照顾家里的一位老人，但同时又要保住一份全职工作或应对裁员带来的压力。

Because all of those things are now happening in the same place, and often at the same time, we may find ourselves switching in between tasks more frequently. All of these things, Epel said, increase our cognitive load -- in other words, they use up more of our mental resources.

因为所有这些事情都发生在同一个地方，而且经常同时发生，我们可能会发现自己更频繁地在任务之间切换。埃佩尔说，所有这些都增加了我们的认知负荷，换句话说，它们消耗了我们更多的精神资源。

Those disruptions are causing stress

这些干扰正在造成压力

Not being able to remember what day it is can also be a symptom of stress, explains Burnett-Zeigler.

伯内特-齐格勒解释说，记不住今天是哪一天也是压力的一种症状。

High stress levels impair our concentration and attention, and can affect short-term memory.

高压力会削弱我们的凝聚力和注意力，并会影响短期记忆。

Another effect of stress? It can worsen our quality of sleep.

压力的另一个影响?它会使我们的睡眠质量变差。

"Often if you're feeling stressed or you're feeling anxious, those thoughts and feelings can show up and either make it more difficult to fall asleep or more difficult to stay asleep," Burnett-Zeigler said.

伯内特-齐格勒说:“通常情况下，如果你感到紧张或焦虑，这些想法和感觉就会出现，要么让你更难入睡，要么让你更难保持睡眠。”

So what can we do about all this?

那么我们能做些什么呢?

The psychiatrists and psychologists we spoke to recommended trying to maintain a sense of structure, to the extent possible. Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day is one strategy.

与我们交谈过的精神病学家和心理学家建议尽量保持一种结构感。每天在同一时间睡觉和起床是一种策略。

They also recommended taking frequent breaks, exercising, eating healthy and limiting news consumption.

他们还建议经常休息、锻炼、健康饮食、少看新闻。