Featured Refresh
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Talk about what is most upsetting or scaring you right now about the coronavirus pandemic.
This week was still waiting to wake up from the bad dream that’s ever present. The full moon on Halloween was so perfect a reflection of the anticipation of the election. Forgetting politics and policy, I want the nightmare of the division and hate tearing this country apart to end. The vitriol and fear among the populist is like these dark clouds floating through the sky. I stand in the middle of the street at midnight watching the moon peeking through, the clouds washing over it, and not a sound in the area. The silence was eerie, no rustling leaves, no barking dogs, no car engines. Just a world of peace, and calm and possibilities, yet darkness and mystery swirling all around, hiding the light. When will we wake from this nightmare and be able to hug those we care about without having to mime through 6 feet of “dead” air space and a mask? Maybe we’ll have an answer to one question next week... the election, but I don’t think Covid is ready to rest it’s ugly head yet, and that nightmare continues.
November 10, 2020
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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
My family is very lucky and privileged to be able to self-isolate and social distance. My husband can work from home I can look after our daughter. Before the pandemic, I was looking for work because we just moved to the state in January. Now, I do not expect to find a job anytime soon nor do I expect to be able to place my daughter in daycare. We have enough money to eat and still buy things we want. I feel guilty because I know so many people are now not able to afford basic needs. My mental health, and my husband's as well, has declined. I have experienced intense anxiety and depression that are directly related to the pandemic. I know my husband is also struggling with depression. I started struggling with insomnia in March 2020 and I have tried a variety of prescription sleep aids. To help, I've invested in a few pieces of home exercise equipment and working out about 4 or 5 days a week. Exercise has always been the effective way for me to reduce anxiety and depression. I have also started therapy, which is virtual and one more thing that I am privileged to afford that many others cannot. The overwhelming thoughts that things are not normal, that we cannot go about life like we want to or would normally, sometimes pull me down. There has to be time in the future when we can return to what we did before but I also know that this will become a common occurrence with climate change and I have a hard time thinking about living in a world that looks like this often.
July 6, 2020