Dr. David Raque

© Susan Todd-Raque

Each night we hear the news and get disheartened as we don’t know when this will end. We go to bed emotionally exhausted, find our sleep is broken, and in the morning, for the moment before we fully wake up, we think life is as it usually is. But it isn’t right now. Very few of us have lived through unknowns such as being in NYC during 9/11, being displaced and losing everything during Hurricane Katrina, or the Holocaust. Like any traumatic event, we have been transitioning back and forth through the stages of shock, denial, anger, and acceptance, not knowing what the end will be.

We know what we must do to be safe from this pandemic with physical distance, face masks, gloves and washing our hands frequently. But about our emotional and mental well-being? Below are some suggestions, courtesy of The New York Times, of ways you can help yourself:

• Keep a journal of your experiences and thoughts.
• Make a plan to meet outside with your neighbors, keeping a distance, and commiserate about what has been going on (a glass of wine or beer may help everyone see the funny side).
• Cook your way through a cuisine and share a dinner with friends via Zoom. Open up your curtains at night and let the sunshine naturally wake you up. Find solace in doing a morning meditation.
• Take an early morning walk and observe the quiet and beauty as the day begins.
• Look at the birds, butterflies, and bees outside (there are apps to help you with identification if you don’t have books).
• Identify the songs of the birds.
  Plant some seeds with nutrients and water and watch them grow in your backyard or window.
• Take food scraps such as an avocado pit, green onion or celery bottoms and put them in water and watch them grow.
• Find out if there are any space shuttles due to come over your sky by going to NASA’s Spot the Station website.
• When you walk, look around you and notice the little changes from one day to the next, one week to the next.
• Draw what your home looks like, you will really “see” who you are through how you live.
  Learn something new, such as writing poetry, making origami, anything you always thought about but never quite got around to learning.
• Walk to a friend’s house, call them and stand outside, using the phone to hear the conversation.
• Postcrossing.org lists people wishing to hear from others around the world through postcards.
• Start a virtual book club with a few friends.
• And finally, communicate on a regular basis with your friends and family by using any one of the many Internet video programs.

We are all trying to evolve and move forward as we stay quarantined from each other. Reach out to others. Seek help if you need it. We are not alone in this.

We are together.