[THREAD] I want to share a thread on coping and reducing some of the anxiety and depression that come with times of crises like these. Completely eliminating any form of anxiety or hopelessness is hard right now given what is happening, but let’s reduce it as much as possible.

The first thing I want to mention is the need to reconnect with the present. We can easily start projecting worse case scenarios in our minds, anticipating the worst because it would help us cope better. Unfortunately, it doesn’t help much. It won’t reduce grief or pain.

But it does add pain and grief in anticipation despite things being relatively okay in the present. When we find ourselves slipping into that line of thinking or spacing out, we can use our sense to reconnect with our environment.

We can take 2 minutes and count sounds, use our sight to see different objects around us, touch fabrics of things around us. We force our brain to focus externally, thereby tuning out the overthinking and loud voices in our minds.

This is also a time where we need our loved ones more than ever. Talking will not cure our anxiety but feeling supported, loved breaks that barrier of loneliness. In the group supports that we had over the weekend, the feedback was overwhelming positive.

It wasn’t because we found a cure or solutions to solving this crisis, but because we realized we weren’t alone in feeling anxious or depressed. People enjoyed knowing others were going through similar battles and leaning on each other for this.

Externalizing is so important. If you feel lonely or feel like you can’t trust people around you, write a tweet asking for a support network, I will happily amplify it and I am sure many would love to be of support. There is nothing wrong in asking for help.

Self-care is also crucial. I know I mention it a lot, but it is important. We may feel guilty in engaging in self-care activities while a crisis is happening. But this pandemic has already been happening for more than a year. To preserve and build energy,

We need to take care of ourselves. It allows us to be of help for longer periods of times rather than short bursts until we burnout. We all deserve to take care of ourselves regardless of external circumstances. It is an action that teaches us to love ourselves unconditionally!

While it is important to offer our help, volunteer if we can, it is also okay to take breaks and steps back. It is also okay to realize that our current mental health doesn’t allow us to do that at the moment. There is nothing wrong with that.

If we overstretch ourselves, it can backfire on our mental health. Boundaries are more important now than before. A lot of people may seek to bypass them (even if accidentally). We can’t be there all the time and it is okay to postpone certain things until we gather energy.

Social media: it is saving lives right now. It is so amazing to see the empathy, the support, the organization that surpasses that of governments. It is also a place where we witness sickness and death on a daily basis. It is okay to limit our exposure.

When we are exposed to this all day and night until we sleep, we may see everything as just hopeless and fall into a darkness where we feel there is no solution, no way out. We may feel guilty having the privilege of being able to tune out at times. But too much of it can hurt.

It is important to know our limits. For example, I reduced the number of private sessions this month compared to before to organize group supports and to rest more. My mental health is also wavering certain days and I try not to push too much past the limit.

We don’t know how long we may be in this, we need some strength for more in the future. You are all amazing and it is important to remember that no matter how bad it gets! Love you all