Maintaining Stability During a Global Pandemic

By Du Young Kim

We are in crisis mode with the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only is this pandemic affecting us physically, but it’s also affecting us in mental, emotional, and financial ways which is why it so important to focus on maintaining stability during in this time. In The New York Times article “How to Help Parents Who are Struggling to Provide for their Kids,”  Christina Caron states that “Right now, nearly one in every eight households doesn’t have enough to eat” due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. She also states that, “Layoffs are claiming hundreds of thousands of jobs a week and more than 50 million people with children under 18 at home say their household has lost income since March 13, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Some families cannot afford diapers, wipes and formula. Others are being threatened with eviction.” These statements in this article alone, should be a clear reason on why we should be saving every dollar we have, until the pandemic is over.

As more positive cases arise, it seems that more anxiety and depression fill our surroundings. According to Jan Hoffman from The New York Times article “Young Adults Report Rising Levels of Anxiety and Depression in Pandemic” she writes, “In a research survey, U.S. residents reported signs of eroding mental health in reaction to the toll of coronavirus illnesses and deaths, and to the life-altering restrictions imposed by lockdowns.” Not only are people anxious and depressed,  but they are also beginning to resort to drugs and other substances to deal with this pandemic causing serious instability.

According to Mark Czeisler , a psychology researcher at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, nearly 63 percent had symptoms of anxiety and or depression that they attributed to the pandemic and nearly a quarter had started or increased their abuse of substances, including alcohol, marijuana and prescription drugs, to cope with their emotions.

During a time like this the best thing to do is to try our best to maintain balance by keeping our mind and body strong. For now, we need to learn to live with the virus instead of trying to fight it off. “It’s not possible to stop the virus,” said Emmanuel Andre a leading virologist in Belgium and former spokesman for the European government’ COVID-19 task force. “It’s about maintaining equilibrium.”

“We are in a living-with-the-virus phase,” said Roberto Speranza, the health minister of Italy. Mr. Speranza also mentioned that a “zero infection rate does not exist.” So instead of worrying about this virus, we need to find a way to go on about our everyday lives with focus.

Maintaining stability is a disciplinary act that one must work on and control in life. This act, if trained comes with many benefits that one will reap during the struggles of our lifetime. If we don’t learn how to maintain stability, we could end up losing ourselves.