Younger generations can teach us a lot about how to be open and honest with our grieving.
In my previous two articles I talked about some of the self-regulation skills that younger generations might have had less opportunity to practice growing up(How to Fight Isolation and How Feedback Makes You Resilient). This time I want to focus on something they can teach the rest of us: openly communicating about grief.
Something has been bothering Kimberly Prather, PhD: Everything she reads about COVID-19 points to a pathogen that travels through the air.
I've often wished I could work from home, but as an OB/GYN I would giggle at the impossibility of doing pap smears and delivering babies remotely. Fast forward to the global pandemic of 2020, where each day before I leave for work, I make sure my tablet is fully charged because about half of my visits each day are done by telehealth. As we all carefully ration each excursion outside our home, it's challenging to know what types of gynecological concerns warrant an office visit, which can be discussed on telehealth, and what issues can really wait until life gets a little more back to normal.
Each May as we enter a new Mental Health Month, I think about people. Talking about mental health and mental illness is not abstract to me. I think of family members, friends and patients. I think both of those struggling and those providing care. Yet my focus for many years has been to think about what is universal. I reflect on people impacted by depression and those enduring hard lives depression-free.
Worries and anxiety about COVID-19 and its impact can be overwhelming. Social distancing makes it even more challenging. Learn ways to cope during this pandemic.