Mental Health | THE VIRAL Journal, Part 13

By Linda Coonan

The virus will compound problems for people with anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, traumatic brain injuries, unstable housing, or those already isolated. 

Forced to close their doors to help mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, most peer support groups are now moving online.  Many people participating in virtual meetings right now say they are thankful for them but admit that they can’t replace the chemistry that happens when they are physically in the same room together.

In Boston, a help line run by the nonprofit group Samaritans said it received about 350 calls a day over the last week, a hundred more calls than are typical on a given day. A spokeswoman at the national Crisis Text Line told the Boston Globe they handled 6,000 conversations last week, about twice as many as usual.

But the States are finding new methods for helping and calling on volunteers. New York’s Governor Cuomo stated "We asked for mental health professionals to voluntarily sign up to provide online mental health services. Six thousand mental health professionals agreed to volunteer to provide mental health services for people who need it. How beautiful is that?"

Cuomo: "God bless the 6,000 mental health professionals who are doing this 100 percent free, on top of whatever they have to do in their normal practice."  

Yes, God Bless those suffering from the virus, coping with mental health issues and those volunteering their services!

Be mindful,

Fairy Queen Mum

>Share Linda’s state of mind? Be Steady Eddy in a BE CALM ShirtBOARD.

Our e-journal documents the COVID-19 pandemic from our viewpoint within our community. In the short-term, we hope it promotes connectivity and contrast within our ShirtBOARD network. In the long-term, we hope it gives timely interpretations of the event to provide insight and understanding for future generations.