Many surprising events happened this year that humanity never thought it would have to face. Our society and its progress have been stopped in its tracks, forced to step down and limited to essential tasks. It has brought a new perspective to life and what it means to be a human.

Everyone is walking with no apparent business. Nobody is rushing anywhere, except for delivery drivers. We might encounter the same people, two or three times on our path. We come home and the day eclipses in a matter of seconds.

After the panic, the fear, the stress and anxiety, we might be in the last stage of lockdown which is in a stage of acceptance and hope.

We can learn from those who survived during wars, famine and economic crises. We can’t control the state of the world but we can improve in what’s happening around us.

Helping a neighbour or calling a friend that you think might be struggling. We can develop resilience and become stronger mentally when we face our fears directly.

When we feel like the energy is being sucked out of ourselves, when we get tired of the news and the negative influx of information, it’s normal to decide to shut down from the world. The attention might be going inwards where we are faced with internal issues and questions that we might never have had the time to see before.

It’s our chance to practice mindfulness to ground ourselves in the moment and appreciate whatever is in front of us.

If you feel alone or trapped, lay down your fears in writing and create space by imagining something new. In a world of constant pressure, choose to disconnect from the world a day or two and connect with your feelings.

Finding things, big or small to be grateful for is always possible. Remember to count a few things or people to be grateful for each day to ease the anxiety.

Things are ugly and some days are really gloomy. What we have to remember is that we are going to get through this together. We are alone together.

(image source: Unsplash, @fynnnyc)