Depending on where you are the world around you is re-opening. For better or worse, here we go and as individuals with anxiety this will be a challenging period. We all have our own feelings on the pandemic, I have restricted my personal opinions (mostly) as I don’t seem to have a mainstream point of view. Needless to say as a libertarian this has been a very curious time. Without being cavalier though I concede fully, just because I feel a certain way doesn’t mean its right way.
We all have to navigate this stage of the game in our own way. I found a good article here that discusses how we might manage our anxiety as we all venture back out.
From the article: “The days and weeks ahead are sure to bring a good deal of anxiety, as so much uncertainty remains about COVID-19. While staying home all the time might not have been fun, it also removed many sources of stress, especially concerns about catching the virus. With our reemergence comes many questions about whether we’re doing the right thing and if we’re being careful enough—and of course concerns about the actions of others. Are our leaders making the right decisions? Will others thrown caution to the wind and get you sick?”
We can haggle over timing and specifics but I think we can all agree at some point we have to open back up. We cannot sustain the current model long term, it’s going to devastate our economy and residually negatively impact Millions more, if not Tens of Millions.
All that aside what about you and your anxiety? What do you do if you still are uncomfortable or are struggling with how to proceed? Your mental and physical health are paramount and just because everything is opening back up it doesn’t mean you have to be compliant.
Let’s be blunt, you are the best gauge of how you feel and how you think you can best move forward in this new reality. All the blog posts, all the comments, all the news outlets, all the government are not experts in you.
If you are uncomfortable, that’s okay. You make gradual small steps back to where you were before. As an example, a trip to the post office might be your weekly excursion back out there for now. That’s okay, you do not need to rush. As long as you have a secure income source, take your time and take care of your mental health.
There are many people out there now who are sick and tired of all this. That’s their right, it’s also your right to take things at your own pace. Stay safe, and take care of yourself.