The thing that you have dreaded has now come to pass

 In Central West NSW we have had relatively few positive cases of Covid 19 until now, but all this has changed almost overnight. In our local town there are, of today, 9 cases and some have been infectious in the community. Testing numbers are alarmingly low and the threat has become very real. It has also been quite difficult to obtain Covid Vaccinations locally until last week, with overstretched and inadequate GP services being the only sources. My husband and I chose to travel 125 kms to another town back in May to obtain our first AstraZeneca dose and had to do the same just over a week ago for the second dose, before the two local Pharmacies and an ADF pop-up clinic came on line last week.

Context

In some ways, with our focus on achieving and maintaining zero cases in Australia, we have been taught to be terrified of Covid 19 rather than to learn to live with it, and now in NSW we are facing the new reality of having to undertake a complete mind shift towards learning to live with it. This involves grieving for what we have lost, whilst realising that in the real life of a world pandemic, we could not continue to remain free and closed off from the Virus, the rest of the world, and other States within Australia. 

Allow reactions 

The past two years have seen us face trauma after trauma, with one horror being replaced by another, before having time to absorb the reality of the first. Bush fires on top of drought, a sickening mouse plague, and all of the tragedy and changes that Covid 19 has thrown at us.

So there are times when we have needed to pause and allow ourselves to react, to grieve, to become angry at injustice, to identify a sense of panic, and to offload our feelings/ have melt-downs. Suppressing, bottling up and denying reactions is never helpful.

Fear of what may happen is harder to live with than reality

When we harbour fears about "what ifs" our minds are dealing with myriad imaginations and possibilities, whereas when the thing that we have feared actually arrives, there is only one reality to deal with, and we are no longer living in that state of anxiety which is about waiting for the axe to fall.

Survival mode and daily living

Living with the thing we have feared puts us into survival mode and a focus on the present, rather than fear of the future. Our lives and ways of daily living are much the same, whilst acknowledging the challenges and restrictions of lock-downs, apart from the risk taking involved when we need to leave home to undertake essential tasks. Life is essentially the same, and it is only our thoughts that are different.

Of course, I acknowledge that I am writing this from the perspective of someone who is retired and spending most of my time at home, and that for others time away from home will be more extensive and carry more risk.

Break the numbers down

Having watched the daily case numbers grow in NSW over the past months to a really alarming level, it can be easy to feel terrified. However a look at a Postcode heat map reveals that there are still many places with low or zero cases across NSW, even in Sydney. This new perspective is helpful when it all begins to feel too overwhelming.

Fresh air to clear the head

We need time to re-engage with meaningful living when going through such times, and a good way to clear our heads to do this, is to go out into the fresh air to walk, to sit, to refill our lungs, to view the sky, to engage with nature and to experience surroundings unaffected by Covid 19.

Remember: The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. Elisabeth Kubler Ross

Just do the next thing

 In current times it can be difficult to stay focused and motivated and, instead, we can just drift into letting days flow slowly past in a state of brain fog. When this happens, I have found it helpful to go into "just do the next thing" mode to maintain some sense of achievement in my days. The benefits of this can be as follows:

It doesn't matter how long a task takes

This approach allows us to just continue on with something, taking as long as we need to do each step, with each step becoming the next thing to do. It is surprising how much gets done, as it encourages us to remain active.

It reduces procrastination

Because we are actually doing something, we move on from procrastination, and have some aims and goals to achieve.

The pressure is taken away

Instead of feeling overwhelmed, we can steadily work through one task after another at a pace that suits us. It is interesting how just writing a "to do" list and crossing a couple of things off can make us feel less pressured, even if there are many more tasks listed. 

Anxiety is reduced

Being active reduces the unhelpful chains of thinking produced by anxiety, as does the sense of achievement as each task is completed. Our thoughts can re-focus on the task instead of random, uncontrolled thoughts and worries.

Regular routines can be incorporated

These can become part of the tasks we do one at a time, as we "just do the next thing" that needs to be done.

Or we can just stay in randomness 

If structure is too difficult because of where our mind-state is at, it is possible to just do one task and then just find another after it is completed, without any pre-defined plan. The secret is just to keep active.

A caution 

It may be necessary to have a background "to do" list to refer to from time to time, so that some important tasks are not forgotten.

Remember: Every morning brings new potential, but if you dwell on the misfortunes of the day before, you tend to overlook tremendous opportunities. Harvey MacKay