A phrase we are hearing more and more every day. How are you coping? Do you have your family with you? Do you have parents and grandparents and older people you are worried about? What are you doing to reach out and how are you connecting?
These are problems we are all facing. Tell us what you are doing, may give ideas to others and generally remove isolation...
Write ups by, @Nhan Kasemsan ,@Aparna saligrama and@shalini Ramachandra are very interesting to read.Each has a different view point.
Personally from what i hear and observe around me, more than the actual impact, it is that lurking feeling of restriction that makes it stifling. If not for this lockdown, say, if we look back and make a chart how much would we have gone out or eaten out or done hiking etc? That is my understanding .
I wish more members share how they ar coping so we an either take a cue or feel comfortable that we are all in the same boat.
Omg @Nhan Kasemsan makes SUCH an important point. I have also wondered often why people come to 'socialize' in cafes and restaurants and get on their devices. This happens with families and friends...I find the latter particularly odd because I am sure they would have made plans for ages to meet! it is all about that one selfie posted on <social media of choice/s> and hashtagging 'girflriends for ever' or something similar!
I wonder how much we are really missing our friends and families and whether we are now talking to them because everyone else seems to be zooming and skyping! I work from home all the time and I find having family around me 24 X 7 very annoying!! I used to enjoy a mid-morning phone chat with my mother over a second cup of coffee which has now effectively ended! So social distancing can mean so many things indeed!
I moped for a few weeks, found myself on the verge of tears on a few occasions, worrying for my family and, really, just for the human race in general. How am I coping now? For one, I don't let myself watch the news too much. Second, I've found that keeping myself occupied/productive helps me move forward, whether it's planning my next meal or cleaning my closet (I really have done that!). And my husband is on a sourdough starter/bread-making kick, so we've been eating very well here in my house.
Well before the pandemic, I would observe people dining together, and they would each be on their phones texting/surfing/<insert activity here that would require NOT engaging with the person sitting across from you>. It seems to bother us now because we aren't being given the choice of whether we want to sit across from each other. I'm rambling a bit here, but I hope after all this blows over, I hope we really learn to appreciate being in the presence of another human being, I mean really being in the moment.
I like @Aparna Saligrama's thoughts that we need to educate our kids about who we are as mothers! I had never thought about it that way. I think we assume our kids know these things and get upset / harassed / stressed when what we really should be doing is helping them make the distinction! And I am not just talking about these times but in general, for life!
And as for @Shalini Ramachandra's comment on kids staying engaged, I think this is because the concept of free play is non existent any more. Partly because of changing societal norms, a lot because now we have more options for camps and classes. With more options rates are getting lower and competitive and more people can afford these. Both parents working is very common as are single parent situation, so what do we do with kids?
Another thing I have noticed is that when kids are at camps and daycare, they have a dedicated caregiver whose job is to hang out with the kids, organizing things the whole time- something they assume is the job of the mother once they are home!! This is making engaging them harder for they don't understand the mother's job is not being the camp counselor + tour guide+ game organizer + snack and food provider alone!
So it is mostly 'educating' our own kids what our role as mothers are! Which our mothers and their mothers before didn't really have to deal with!
I am so happy to see @Yvette Francino and @Shalini Ramachandra connecting! This is quite simply why I built this platform! Be still my heart!!! ❤️
A lot is being said and complained about keeping the kids engaged in the wake of the pandemic and school closures. While I empathize and deal with the problem myself everyday now, it got me thinking if this is another problem we have been instrumental in creating.
I think back to my school summer breaks in Bangalore, the long days in sweltering humid heat (I did not think so then, it was all about the no home work and no tests and no getting ready for school 😊). Both budget limitations and trends were such that the days were not activity packed. Yet extremely enjoyable. We reveled in the joys of free time and free play. This generation is bereft of that joy. The parents have the kids activities and schedules planned. We have created the environment where we tell them where they should be next and for how long. Now without warning, the kids are faced with the situation where they have nowhere to go and nothing to do! All of us are improvising and managing but its interesting that this may have been a non issue for my parents or grandparents. Thoughts welcome!
I've really been using Zoom a lot and actually connecting much more than usual with family and friends because we are all home now. I even got my Mom on Zoom for the first time. I've been trying to help other people connect this way.