Our world – our lives – are changing so quickly due to Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 that we can barely keep up with what every new day brings. Social Isolation is a concept that has jumped to the forefront of our new reality. And it exists for a good reason – to save lives. I believe it is important we make changes and decisions that will help keep ourselves, our communities and our world as safe as humanly possible.
But social isolation has problems of its own. In November of 2016, long before the world was rocked by COVID-19, Psychology Today published an article, The Perils of Social Isolation. Author Frank T. McAndrew Ph.D. stated, “Humans are hardwired to interact with others,” and, “When we go through a trying ordeal alone, a lack of emotional support … can … hinder our coping ability.”
Due to circumstances beyond our control, many of us are being forced or are voluntarily choosing to practice social isolation. Sure, there is usually access from home to plenty of movies, TV shows, recordings, etc., but what about personal communication in real, or close to real, time?
What can we do to make as many human connections as possible?
It may be time to use our texts and emails in more circumstances or to more people. Let your light shine through even if you can’t interact in person. And remember to make phone calls, especially using Skype or Facetime if available. Maybe it’s time to rediscover the ancient art of sending a card or letter, especially to those not electronically connected.
For those who do use electronics, thank goodness for interactive social media. Whether you prefer Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WordPress, Pinterest, Goodreads, or many other applications, we can find each other online to share, chat, show and tell, or talk about the ordeal we are going through. Personally, I am going to try to do more Facebook chatting with members of a writing group rather than meeting live in a restaurant.
In other words, do whatever we can to keep being part of each other’s lives. It’s time for stretching the imagination and putting possibilities into action.
For Minnesota musician Charlie Roth, that means realizing his plan to keep performing for his audiences who live in nursing homes. “Technology is on our side,” he says, about the use of videoconferencing to allow him to livestream from his living room, singing and playing his guitar remotely for audiences he can still see and interact with. “We can figure it out.”
With creativity and caring, we can find and implement ways to stay personally connected, even if we (or others) are socially isolated in this virus-upended world.
Realize Your Dreams 