New Beginnings, New Normal

 

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        Just a few months ago, when our life started to change abruptly. The entire world stopped and everything went to a pause when pandemic happens, amending everything into the new normal in just a short period of time. People were instructed to observe precautionary measures and retaining three feet social distance, including prohibition of eating and speaking in public transport to reduce widespread of the virus. Social distancing limited our contact to the outside world, some people lost their job and are in need for financial support, students and teachers experience immense struggle due to various unplanned alteration on the teaching modality and learning process, and the list goes on. But most importantly, this event affected the mental health of Filipinos.

        We Filipinos are known to be one of the most resilient people regarding bearing such struggles like this. But are we really that tough enough to face the pandemic? Actually, according to World Health Organization, Philippines was recorded as one of the Southeast Asian countries that had the highest rates of depression even before COVID pandemic started. Although, resilience isn’t something we were born with, it is developed over time. With that being said, there are many things we can try to cope up with our uncertainties.

        Many are having a hard time ─ people that struggle with the adjustments in their work, students that are catching up with the curriculum and including people affected by unemployment. Contemplating of  whether life will ever return to normal, how an individual keep up with his daily life; these are few of the many concerns making an ordinary Filipino feel uncertain. But the only way to survive is to let go of all these worries, and unleash ourselves to explore better ways to spend our precious time, to replenish our mental and emotional state through positive undertakings that can maintain our well-being.

        Be open about what you feel. We are humans and it’s natural for us to have emotions, it is our right to voice them out. Expressing our emotions in a mindful way is better than bearing problems all alone. We all have the right to speak out, whatever is in our mind or what we feel. Do not hesitate to seek help and support. Talk to you parents or friends that you can trust, let them hear you out or seek for counseling.

        Other than that, self-care is also necessary. Taking care of ourselves is extremely important especially at this point. Given the fact that we are currently handling many problems and hardships especially with the world’s current situation, remember that we still have to take good care of our body and our health. Taking time to relax and break free from the problems we face is just one way of the many activities we can do. Build a healthy habit, set some goals like eating more and healthy, strengthening ourselves and just looking after ourselves generally. Take this moment as an opportunity to refresh and start again.

Reference/s:

               Coronel, R. (2020, March 26). How the COVID-19 Pandemic has affected Filipinos’ mental health? CNN Philippines. Retrieved from https://cnnphilippines.com

               Morales N. J., & Perry M. (2020, September 19). Philippines’ Duterte keeps one meter social distancing rule. Reuters. Retrieved from https://news.yahoo.com/philippines-duterte-keeps-one-meter-033835437.html

               Malindog-uy A. (2020, July 19). COVID-19 Impact on Mental Health Of Filipinos. The Asean Post. Retrieved from https://theaseanpost.com/article/covid-19-impact-mental-health-filipinos