For more than a year, COVID-19 has forced people to depart from their normal routines. Physical isolation, working from home, and added stress and anxiety about a deadly coronavirus have led some people to develop bad habits that have consequences on both physical and mental health.

"When we're under stress, we revert back to what's comfortable," says Dr. Benjamin Lai, a Mayo Clinic family medicine physician. "COVID-19 has brought unpredictability and a sense of loss of control. So, we fall back to what's familiar. Some eat for comfort. Some seek alcohol. Some spend too much time on social media. It all boils down to dealing with chronic stress."

So how can these bad habits developed during the pandemic be broken?

On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Lai discusses strategies for getting back to healthier habits.