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Public health threats can have a long-lasting effect but can be managed in an emotionally healthy way.

Individuals may experience a spike in anxiety and unpleasant memories of the previous pandemic.

Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic can help us navigate Hantavirus while maintaining our mental health.

You likely remember where you were in March 2020 when lockdowns began and the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic set in. Since then, although we have returned to a state of relative normalcy, you may have unpleasant memories or even traumatic memories which can be triggered by specific stimuli such as disturbing images of the pandemic or news related to new or potential viruses. Recently, news has come out about Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, a virus that, though different from COVID-19, poses a similarly serious risk to those infected. Psychologically, this news can bring on traumatic memories and spike anxiety. Understanding the psychology of disaster-related anxiety and trauma is vital as we face a new public health threat. We need to clarify that, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Hantavirus infections are uncommon and are linked to specific environmental exposures whereas COVID-19 quickly became a global pandemic because of its fast spread from person to person. So, while these two viruses are different and the Hantavirus is unlikely to be as catastrophic as COVID-19, the traumatic memories and the anxiety they trigger do not differentiate.

In my book, Understanding and Coping with Illness Anxiety, I discuss the idea of “societal anxiety,” which can affect entire regions or countries—or in the........

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