This past week has been one of the strangest weeks of my life.\u00a0 COVID 19 is turning everything and everyone upside down.\u00a0 \u00a0By now we’re all familiar with the list of folks who are most at risk for serious complications from this virus, but there’s another group of people at risk that no one’s talking about.\u00a0 Theirs isn’t a higher risk of dying as a direct result of the virus, but rather from their own disease taking over their lives.\u00a0 I’m talking about those of us with mental illnesses.<\/p>\n
No matter how well we are able to manage our illness under normal conditions, the added stress of the current pandemic will make it exponentially harder.\u00a0 \u00a0Whether we suffer from an eating disorder, anxiety, depression, OCD, or anything else, there are many pitfalls for us during this crisis.\u00a0 We may not be able to get to our medical or therapy appointments because they are considered “non essential”.\u00a0 We may have difficulty getting our medications.\u00a0 We may be dealing with triggers that have derailed our best coping mechanisms in the past.\u00a0 The list goes on.<\/p>\n
Adding to our stress are those who dismiss our concerns.\u00a0 They will say things like “Everyone is anxious right now, you’re nothing special”.\u00a0 Would you say that to a loved one who’s worried because they are immunocompromised as a result of cancer treatments or COPD?\u00a0 Of course not.\u00a0 You would make sure they are taking proper care of themselves.\u00a0 The same should be true of us.<\/p>\n
If someone you know has trusted you enough to share their diagnosis of a metal illness with you please check on them.\u00a0 Listen to more than just their words for signs of struggle, and above all else let them know you care and you are there for them (from a safe distance of course).\u00a0 \u00a0Think twice before posting\/ sharing a meme about the pandemic that minimizes or mocks mental health conditions.\u00a0 \u00a0Be a good friend and a good human.\u00a0 More lives are riding on this than you may ever know.<\/p>\n
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This past week has been one of the strangest weeks of my life.\u00a0 COVID 19 is turning everything and everyone upside down.\u00a0 \u00a0By now we’re all familiar with the list of folks who are most at risk for serious complications from this virus, but there’s another group of people at risk that no one’s talking about.\u00a0 Theirs isn’t a higher… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3021,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-issues","category-myself"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t