This July, We’re Coping with the World

Hey Zoomers,

There are only five months left until 2020 is over, and I think we can all agree that this year might just be the worst one of our collective lives. In the Philippines alone, we have dealt with the almost-eruption of Taal volcano, the coronavirus pandemic, the shutdown of our biggest television network, and the constant threats to our democracy and freedom of speech.

The rest of the world hasn’t been any better. I don’t think I need to remind anyone that the year began with the Australian bushfires. And like the first domino that fell, we had seen an unstoppable force of misfortune follow afterwards, with floods in Indonesia, locusts in East Africa, and more recently, the poor reaction of Trump to racially-charged attacks by the police in America. Oh, and of course, coronavirus.

How could I forget?

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This is a crazy world we’re living in, and it’s not getting any easier with what’s happening outside. Quarantine has forced us to be indoors all the freaking time. Even now that regulations have relaxed a bit, I think we are all afraid of getting infected by Miss Rona, so we can’t go wherever we please like we used to.

I think that has made it difficult for most of us to get some peace of mind. And being indoors forces us to be creatures of social media, but it’s not like that’s any better with all the bad news coming out. Do you ever just reminisce about the mundane things that you used to do before corona happened?

Because I do.

I think about all the times that I’d just drive to the nearest mall and treat myself to a nice meal on Wednesdays. Or the times I’d get a random call from a bored friend who just wanted to get dinner together. These were small things, but they kept me sane. And because of the pandemic, we had to sacrifice those “small things” that kept us alive.

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It’s tough out here, and we have to acknowledge that there is a learning curve to taking care of mental health in these times. It’s okay not to be okay. With that said, I don’t pretend to know the answer to anything about the issues that surround our emotional capacities as human beings. All that I want to do with this platform is discuss this topic as freely as possible, without the stigma of mental health, and spread tips on how I take care of myself, because I’m in the camp that says self-care is the best care.

It’s important to learn more about mental health no matter how young you may think you are, because all of us have experienced some sort of anxiety in our lives. That has to be ranked up there with one of the worst feelings a person could ever feel. And unfortunately, it’s never going to stop from returning.

So this July, let’s talk about mental health for teenagers and children, because yes, we are facing a lot of pandemics right now (I’m talking metaphorically here), and we are going to cope with all of them together! We are moving forward with our sanity intact.