It would be hard to overstate the massive impact of this past year’s pandemic on individuals’ mental health. Last August, the Centers for Disease Control reported results of a survey that showed anxiety disorder symptoms in 2020 to be three times those reported in the same period of 2019, and depressive disorder about four times… Read more »
Learn More
Everyone is struggling to cope during these unprecedented times. The second spike that was predicted for winter has already begun. We have no idea if and when a vaccine will be developed and then distributed. We are basically in the same alarming situation we were in when Covid first appeared in March and our future… Read more »
Learn More
Terrified, exhausted, super scared, fearful, bracing, holding, preparing, anxious, fatigued, dreading, panicked, hopeful, fierce, steady. These are the words that people have used to describe their visceral feelings in this moment. ‘Control what you can’ is a prescriptive offered by many helping professionals to take the focus away from what is outside of our power and… Read more »
Learn More
While it is true life has been disrupted, how do we make sense of it for our kids? Their routines are changed; relationships are now managed with social distancing and pods. We told them tech has its place and now it is where they are getting their schooling. Social unrest is challenging the questions of… Read more »
Learn More
One of the hardest things about living through a pandemic is being separated from people we love and the activities we used to share. Between social distancing, travel restrictions, and in some cases the need to quarantine, we are all grappling with new levels of isolation. I’ve written a lot about coping with loneliness during… Read more »
Learn More
In the time of COVID-19, life has changed. Many of us feel simultaneously overwhelmed and bored. I commonly hear how tired folks are when in fact, their lives are being lived in a smaller footprint. Time drags on and melts away as days all blend together, going fast and slow at the same time. It… Read more »
Learn More
The beginning of this month marks a half year of being quarantined in my home. I really can’t complain; I am living with my husband and some family members in a comfortable house in a lovely setting. But it’s getting long and it’s hard to see an end to my situation in the near future…. Read more »
Learn More
Two weeks ago, I was talking to a friend who has been depressed. Because of COVID-19 and her age, she is quarantined and has been unable to visit with many of her friends. As she described the details of her life and her loneliness, she broke down crying, “I don’t recognize my life! I don’t… Read more »
Learn More
“You can’t always know the end from the beginning.” This is advice that my mom has been giving me for years. My inclination, as a planner, has always been to shrug it off and roll my eyes…until I had to start telling my college sophomore and rising high school senior the same, in preparation for… Read more »
Learn More
In this Experts at Home conversation, Dr. Lisa Firestone talks with Dr. John Draper, the Project Director of the SAMHSA-funded National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. They discuss mental health challenges during Covid-19 and the value of prioritizing mental health during times of crisis. Watch Now: Subscribe to PsychAlive (it’s free!) to see more Experts at Home…. Read more »
Learn More