If you’ve been self-isolating with your relatives since coronavirus lockdown measures went into effect, it’s likely that you’ve gotten fed up with their company at least once.
Luckily, Russia’s Health Ministry has a solution to your woes: Simply make sure you stay angry at them for no more than 10 minutes.
The recommendations appear in an aptly named advisory, "How to Survive Self-Isolation and Not Go Crazy," which was recently published on the Health Ministry’s website.
“It’s permissible to be angry at other family members, but not for more than 3-10 minutes,” the guide says. After that, you should forgive the other person, it says.
“You should calm down and ask yourself: Were you right or not? If you were wrong about something, apologize.”
According to the recommendations, compiled by the Health Ministry's chief psychiatrist Zurab Kekelidze, families should openly communicate and create a shared routine based on the interests of each family member.
Following these guidelines can ensure “a general positive attitude within the household” as well as the “personal space of each family member,” the Health Ministry's advisory says.
The advisory comes as Russian lawmakers and activists warn that coronavirus lockdown measures have sparked a surge in domestic violence across the country. The authors of Russia’s delayed domestic abuse law last month asked the government to take emergency steps to protect victims during quarantine.
Last week, a Russian Orthodox Church official took a different approach to maintaining a peaceful household, instead urging women not to reprimand their husbands during the lockdown in order to avoid domestic conflict.
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