While it is very important that we remember to keep a distance of 6 feet between or two arm’s length when we are out and about, it is equally important that we learn how to reduce or eliminate emotional distance between ourselves, loved ones and friends.  Our emotional bonds help us to have hope in the face of what perhaps seems hopeless.

Here are 4 tips that may help:

  1. Reach out to others; Be sure to reach out to others at least once daily for thirty minutes.  Try to do FaceTime, Skype, phone calls, texting-connect with other people to seek and provide support.  Don’t forget to do this for your children as well.  Set up virtual play dates with friends daily via FaceTime, Facebook Messenger with kids, Zoom, etc.-our kids miss their friends too!
  2. Notice the good in the world; Notice the helpers.  There is a lot of scary, negative, and overwhelming information to take in regarding the pandemic.  There are also a ton of stories of people sacrificing, donating, and supporting one another in miraculous ways.  It is important to counterbalance the heavy information with hopeful information.  What optimistic stories are you noticing in your immediate surroundings? Write them down or record and share them. All of our stories and perspectives are going to be important as we try to make meaning out of all the changes that are occurring.
  3. Help others; Find ways, big and small, to give back to others.  Look for the unseen and the unheard in your communities: persons with disabilities, the homeless, the hungry, those living with intimate partner violence, those with mental and emotional challenges, the lonely. Support restaurants, offer to grocery shop, check in with elderly neighbors, write wellness tips for others-helping others gives us a sense of agency when things seem out of control.
  4. Reach out for help; Know that your team is there for you.  If you have a therapist or psychiatrist, they are available to you, even at a distance.  Keep up your medications and your therapy sessions the best you can. If you are having difficulty coping, seek out help for the first time.  There are mental health people on the ready to help you through the crisis. Your children’s teachers and related service providers will do anything within their power to help, especially for those parents tasked with the difficult task of being a whole treatment team to their child with special challenges.  Seek support groups of fellow home schoolers, parents, and neighbors to feel connected.  There is help and support out there, any time of the day-although we are physically distant, we can always connect virtually.

Now that you have read these tips, please head on over to my website to schedule a time to continue the conversation.  During this time of crisis, I am offering complimentary discovery calls to help us all optimize and close the gaps of any emotional distance, fear, since of crisis, worry, or anxiety that you may be experiencing at this time. Have your FREE discovery call by scheduling a time on www.drcarolpenn.com