Our Changing Lives
How all our lives have changed over the last three weeks. I’m writing this on Day 13 of semi lockdown. It’s early Saturday morning and we are predicted to have a warm week-end; unusually warm in fact, for the time of year. Many of us would be looking forward to spending time with our friends and family, perhaps going to a concert, a weekend away or on a holiday that had been planned a long time ago. All of those plans have been cancelled, three weeks ago with reluctance but now with our acceptance and agreement. The Olympics which were due to be held in Japan have been cancelled, the last time they were cancelled was in World War 2.
The Corona virus has affected us all. We are at home, some of us working from home, some home schooling children, some caring for elderly relatives, friends and neighbours. Some people are doing all of these. Children and young adults who were expecting to take exams this summer are now unable to do so and their results will be based on the decisions of their teachers.
This is serious, unprecedented, people have lost jobs, people are becoming ill, and people are losing their lives. We have restrictions imposed upon us that most of us have never experienced before.
The situation many of us have found ourselves in has generated some wonderful things. Neighbours are looking after each other, people are finding different ways to communicate, people are being incredibly creative. We are looking out for each other and using our strengths and skills to support and care for each other. We are openly appreciating and applauding our fantastic National Health Service and Key workers, work which most of us took for granted before Corona changed our lives.
This has all taken it’s toll on our physical and mental health. Whilst there is a lot of advice on how we can keep fit physically, there is not so much advice on how we can manage our feelings of stress and anxiety at this time.
I recently read an article recently by Scott Berinato: ‘That Discomfort You’re Feeling is Grief’. He quotes David Kessler, who has written several books on grief:
‘We are feeling a different number of griefs. We feel the world has changed, and it has. We know this is temporary, but it doesn’t feel that way, and we realise things will be different. Just as going to the airport is forever different from how it was before 9/11, things will change and this is the point at which they changed. The loss of normalcy; the fear of economic toll; the loss of connection. This is hitting us and we’re grieving. Collectively. We are not used to this kind of collective grief in the air.”
An interesting article which goes on to suggest what we do to manage these feelings can be found at: https://hbr.org/2020/03/that-discomfort-youre-feeling-is-grief (04/04/2020)
Whilst the Natural Health Centre is closed at this time, Lucy and I are still working remotely with our clients. If you are feeling overwhelmed or anxious about any aspect of your life relating to the Corona virus situation or other ongoing issues, we are here for you. Talking helps enormously. Verbalising thoughts allows you to put things into perspective, to process your feelings and to move forwards. If you are concerned about accessing remote sessions, we can guide you through it.
We can be contacted on:
Linda: mobile: 07919 575553 email: lindaburley@live.co.uk
Lucy: mobile: 07714 143634 email: lucyhferguson@hotmail.com
Take care and stay safe
Linda Burley
04/04/2020