“I am not telling you it’s going to be easy. I’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.” ~Art Williams
As I write this blog, most of us are isolating in our homes as a protective factor against the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). When we have to go out to get groceries or medications, we are practicing social distancing and washing our hands 20 seconds with soap (try singing the chorus to “I Will Survive”) and taking other measures to keep our bodies safe. But what are we doing to keep our emotions – our mental health—safe?
Most of us have been touched very personally by this pandemic. My granddaughter, Megan, is a nurse in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is being assigned COVID-19 patients on a daily basis and I am terrified for her. We’re all having to cope with unprecedented levels of uncertainty, anxiety, and loneliness — a perfect storm for a level of stress that can take a significant toll, not only on our happiness, but on our immune system, making us more susceptible than usual to the very infection we are trying to avoid.
There is a wealth of free online health services and advice during the COVID-19 Pandemic such as the MarketWatch.com March 30 issue. But I believe there is something else that all of us can be doing to offset the fear and override the stress, loneliness, even boredom we might be experiencing. We are social beings. Many great wisdom traditions teach us that compassion and reaching out to help others plays a major role in calming our minds and diminishing our own fear and anxiety. Our mind turns from concerns about our personal problems to how we might be of help to a loved one, a friend, a neighbor, or a stranger. Now, more than ever, we can be of help to each other, so we need to reach out.
The Pea Soup Experience
The actions of any one of us can affect all of us. One of my favorite authors, Caroline Myss, uses an analogy of “Pea Soup,” suggesting that living together in our world is like floating around together in a big vat of pea soup. If someone puts poison in his own pea soup through his thoughts, words and actions, he also poisons my pea soup and your pea soup. But by the same token, if someone does something to make the pea soup better, it enhances the soup for everyone.
Even as we practice isolation and social distancing, most of us are still communicating with one another. Every choice we make, every action we take, and every word we speak sets energy in motion. That energy has a ripple effect on our collective pea soup. If you talked with someone on the phone this morning, did you uplift, or were you a source of discouragement? Who will that person then talk to and what effect will that conversation have? If you sent out text messages or emails today, what ripple effects will those emails have? Who will those people talk to? Who will their actions affect? The pea soup analogy suggests the power and value of being mindful of the choices you make when you interact with others.
So, what can we do right now to start bringing calm and sanity to this crazy world we are living in – – even just to our own minds ? Here are some things we can do right at home – – ingredients we can add on a daily basis to the pea soup we all share:
- Statement of intention: Start each day with a statement of intention such as, “I will always be mindful how I am showing up in the world every minute of every day, mindful of every thought I think, every word I speak and every action I take.”
- Look within: A peaceful world starts at home. Every night before going to bed ask yourself, “How well have I cared for others today? How well have I cared for myself? Whom have I uplifted? Whom have I hurt?”
- Acts of kindness: You can easily make a difference for others by building conscious acts of kindness into your daily life. A few examples would be helping others through such acts as being a good listener for those with whom you are sheltering-in-place, giving a grocery gift card to someone in need, and showing gratitude to health workers. These and other simple acts satisfy our basic human need to connect with others and have a positive effect on our own emotional and physical health.
I am offering this and future blogs as an opportunity to draw our attention to the fact that our attitude, how we use our thoughts and our minds during this time of sheltering in place, is something that each one of us is free to choose. The choice we make is important. Please join in supporting one another with this and future blogs by adding your thoughts via the comment section. Share your ideas for uplifting yourself and those around you, keeping relationships healthy, caring for your pets and/or just passing the time in a way you enjoy. And yes, adding suggestions and comments is a way of giving. It is an act of kindness!
May you be happy, healthy and safe!
Donna
Note: This article is an adaptation of my 2012 article in eBella magazine, What Are You Adding To The Pea Soup.