May is Mental Health Awareness Month. For most of us, it also marks the two-month milestone of working from home and socially distancing. What an unprecedented two months it has been. From March to May, we all have been on a rollercoaster ride of stress and uncertainty. For those directly affected, there has been illness and death. Loss of life continues to be the most heartbreaking and devastating impact individually and globally.
Yet this worldwide crisis is also garnering infamous distinction from other catastrophes due to the enormity of its widespread disruption to daily activities and the staggering strata of fallout it will inflict for many years to come. And as if that is not enough, the nature of this crisis has circumvented our innate response to collective pain—coming together for comfort.
Typically when disaster strikes, we see a massive surge in connection activities. Extended families immediately check-in and reconnect. Neighbors offer each other hands-on help. Faith communities hold special services. Food is lovingly prepared and shared. People stand side-by-side during candle vigils, memorials, funerals. Members of communities come together to repair, rebuild, and heal. Hands reach out. Endless hugs are given. We offer and receive comfort in rituals and traditions steeped in physical togetherness.
This is why one of the very cruelest aspects of this virus may be the way we have to fight it—through physical isolation and social distancing. However, the ingenuity that has been shown by individuals staying safe while still finding ways to overcome connection barriers has been inspiring and profoundly beautiful.
Whether talking from across street corners, seeing loved ones through windows, dropping off food on doorsteps, or using technology to connect, people are finding ways to come together in spirit while staying physically apart.
From the onset, CCFL immediately sought to implement remote means of providing encouragement and connection to staff through new support systems. These efforts speak to CCFL's wonderful workplace culture and have been greatly beneficial.
We do not cope well in isolation. Human beings need connection. So in light of May being Mental Health Awareness Month, a continued focus on staying socially connected during this pandemic seems entirely appropriate and fundamentally important.
The recommendations made below are taken directly from the UNL Employee Assistance Program website page, STAYING SOCIALLY CONNECTED: https://hr.unl.edu/staying-socially-connected.
During a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic, saving lives becomes the highest priority, followed by limiting economic harm. People’s emotional well-being is seldom treated as a matter of utmost public concern. Yet relationships with other people are the foundation on which humans build healthy, fulfilling lives, so we must safeguard them as the threat of a social recession looms even larger. Below are some ways to stay connected:
• Find a pen pal! Go back to the basics and write a letter to a friend or family member. Writing is a good exercise to express how you are feeling about your current situation.
• Schedule a virtual “hangout” with friends or loved ones using an online video system such as FaceTime or Google Hangout or Zoom.
• If you would normally have a lunch date with a friend once a week, continue to schedule this by video.
• Call a neighbor or friend to check-in on how they are doing.
• If you are healthy, offer to run an errand for an elderly neighbor. Helping others can help us feel connected and gives us a sense of purpose during this difficult time.
• Go for a walk and greet others from a safe distance.
• If you are home with a family member, play a board game or activity that requires everyone to put their screens aside.
• Practice being comfortable with your own thoughts. Use 15 minutes a day to reflect on the positives in your life and use “I am grateful for____” statements.
• Go for a drive with a family member to a place you have never been.
• Complete an outdoor chore as a family or take turns doing yard work with a friend at each other’s house.
• Go fishing with a friend and enjoy time together at a safe distance.
• Enjoy a five senses scavenger hunt in nature or in your house with family or a friend.
• Begin a virtual book club.
• Revisit favorite childhood games such as hopscotch, jumping rope and building forts.
• Create chalk sidewalk art or write positive messages for passersby to enjoy.
Additional Resources for Social Connection:
1. CCFL’s Facebook & Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/UNLCCFL https://twitter.com/UNLCCFL
2. Coming Together for Wellness: https://cehs.unl.edu/comingtogetherforwellness’
3. Coalition to End Social Isolation & Loneliness: https://www.endsocialisolation.org/covid19
4. COVID-19 Information and Resources: https://www.nebraskachildren.org/covid-19-information-and-resources.html