Each day we look at how we can still grow and even flourish amidst a pandemic. Today we look at how practicing Mindfulness and Compassion can facilitate growth and health.

 

Resilience can be tough to come by in the midst of the daily experiences of grief that the  pandemic brings us.  Of course there is fear and sadness if someone close to us has gotten sick or died.  But even if this hasn’t been your direct experience, COVID-19 has visited a myriad of “little griefs” upon us, such as missing an event marking a milestone like a retirement or significant birthday/anniversary, having vacation plans cancelled or, losing the weekly ritual of meeting friends at a local hangout.

On the face of it, these losses hardly compare to the death of a loved one, for example.  And even still, they cause a sense of sadness in us, often compounded by a sense of guilt, because the loss seems so small in the context of a global pandemic.

No wonder then that a lot of how we’re dealing with the pandemic is escapism.  Whether it’s an endless “Netflix and chill” scenario or obsessively reading or cooking, or, in fact, if we are turning to mind altering substances with a frequency unlike any other time in our lives, many of us just want an easy way to check out from the daily sense of loss and fear the pandemic has brought us.

We all need a mental break from time to time, but sooner or later, we are dragged (sometimes kicking and screaming) back into reality.  

Mindfulness practices offer both an evidence-based way to deal with reality for ourselves as well as a way to generate compassion for others.  It turns out that being present to how things actually are, rather than how we wish they were, can be a powerful way to recoup our resilience, stay healthy and even thrive in the midst of life’s challenges.  

 

 

SOMETHING TO WATCH

Ambiguous Grief: Managing Emotional Losses during the Pandemic 

Brene Brown video on Nurturing Empathy 

 

SOMETHING TO DO

6 minute Self-Compassion Break 

Strengthen Feelings of Compassion through a Loving Kindness Meditation  

Build resilience by changing the way you respond to challenges: How Would You Treat a Friend  

 

SOMETHING TO READ

“Our calm is contagious”: How to use mindfulness in a pandemic 

A List of Mindfulness Resources Online 

Educational Opportunities with Compassion Network 

 

By referring you to specific web pages, WRHA Spiritual Health Services and IHCAM do not necessarily endorse the full content of the website.