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| Health workers in Spain (AP) |
One of the casualties of this disease is our state of mind. There is
panic in the air. Which is reflected by the panic buying at grocery stores of
things like toilet paper (of all things). That and the fear over the direction of
the economy is enough to make just about everyone panic. On top of that there is anxiety over how long
this will last!
The mental health of all of us is at stake. It is unhealthy
to be in a constant state of anxiety. Which is hard not to do when there is wall to
wall coverage of the coronavirus by the entire media establishment. (I have
been guilty of that too.) The constant dire warnings from government and public
health officials about what’s coming is enough to make perfectly sane people go
mad! So I thought some good news is in
order.
Yes, the disease can be deadly and is a lot more contagious
than the flu. BUT… for the vast majority of those under 60, that are healthy – if
you contract the virus the disease is generally pretty mild. It eventually passes
without too much suffering. I heard one expert
say that in most cases the degree of suffering is even less than that of the
flu!
A vaccine has been developed that is now going through human testing. (Although it is still about a year away from being approved.)
The stock market is up (for now).
The stock market is up (for now).
And if there is anything positive about the community panic,
it is that most of us are practicing social distancing. That will ‘flatten the curve’.
Meaning that there should not be the sudden spike in coronavirus cases that countries
like Italy (and more recently Spain ) have experienced. That will make the increase a lot more manageable
and more lives will this be saved.
Perhaps the best news of all is the following form AP:
Perhaps the best news of all is the following form AP:
Just one new case was confirmed in Wuhan, the Hubei provincial capital where the illness was first detected in late December.
They must be doing something
right (which If I understand correctly has to do mostly with social distancing).
We ought to be following their example. Who knows? Maybe we can get out of this
with a lot less damage than everyone is predicting… if we stay the course and
remain vigilant about it.
In the meantime we must remain calm in the face of
adversity. If for no other reason than to remain sane. While we need to stay
informed we also need not over-focus on this issue.
The change in our daily lives and anxiety about the future
is real. We need to be distracted. Distraction
will help keep us sane. Which means not constantly reading every article or
listening to every broadcast on the issue. One or two times per
day ought to be enough. Once in the morning and once in the
evening. The rest of the time should be spent in other pursuits that are as far
away from this issue as possible.
Torah study is perhaps the best distraction. Not to mention
the fact that it is a Mitzvah which brings us great merit in the eyes of God. It
doesn’t really matter so much these days how knowledgeable one is in order to
benefit from Torah study. There are Shiurim galore on the internet for any
level of proficiency in a variety of Torah topics.
Spend some quality time
with your children - perhaps by playing some board games.
Read a book.
Listen to some music.
Watch a TV drama or comedy.
Listen to some music.
Watch a TV drama or comedy.
Download a movie that does not have inappropriate
content. (Such as this year’s Oscar nominated film ‘1917’. Or the one from a couple of years ago, ‘Hidden Figures’.)
Doing any one of these - or any combination of them - will
surely leave us with a healthier state of mind. And that will surely contribute
to our physical health as well. We need to do it if we are to come out of this not
only physically healthy but mentally healthy.
Be vigilant – but stay calm. That is my message, today. Barring any surprises I hope to be changing
the subject entirely tomorrow.
