We are now well into our second month of lock-down and following the Prime Minister’s address on the 10th of May restriction are being lifted. This caused a lot more debate as to whether this is a good thing or bad – guess time will tell.
It is not clear to everyone as to what they should be doing; this can be frustrating and can stretch the limits of your stress tolerance and wider mental / emotional health. Thankfully – for the majority – we are now free to leave the house. This doesn’t apply to those who are vulnerable, were asked to remain inside for 12 weeks, or believe they have symptoms of Covid – 19. Providing you can leave the house, regular exercise will help your level of frustration. Parks, green spaces and beaches are open, so if you have access to these, we recommend you take advantage of them. Being cautions however, we don’t believe a trip to the beach is allowed if it’s not in your local area – a two hour journey will still be classed as non-essential!
Active Listening Therapies thoughts
Our take on this, is download your favourite music and stretch your legs – don’t forget that social distancing remains, so you must stay 2 metres apart from other people.
Children will still be confused – heck, adults are still confused! So take a breath, keep up the baking, adult colouring and mindfulness… If you are stressed, we can be sure that your children will be too. Just remember – whilst it is hard – there may not be another opportunity to spend so much time as a family household; never again will you be able to say ‘if only I had the time!’
Everyone has an opinion right now, whether it is 5G, Corona Virus or when it will be best to send the kids back to school. We all need to accept each other’s views and opinions. You may not agree with them – and that is okay, the world would be a very boring place if we agreed on everything! One thing is for certain, the people who are working at the coal-face – the key workers and the experts supporting the Government should be respected. In fact, everyone should be respected. Being nice will help everyone through this situation.
It’s okay to still have doubt
It’s okay to not be okay right now – we won’t be judging you. If you do feel like you are losing control, stop and take a moment to reflect.
Have you enough food?
Do you have the essentials to keep your home comfortable and safe?
What is bothering you – can you make changes for the better?
Do you have someone to talk to outside of the home environment?
The situation we are faced with, will get – and is getting better. At Active Listening Therapies we are working toward a phased return to seeing clients face-to-face. This means we are opening up a limited number of appointments per week at our Newark clinic. If you do require counselling support we will make an assessment based on your circumstances as to whether it is appropriate to see you. In the meantime we are still offering video and telephone appointments.
Stick with it, try to be calm and we’ll catch up with you soon.
If you’d like a chat to discuss your mental and emotional health, you can reach us on the following numbers:
Louise – 07568 390402
Duncan – 07759 948001