'You Can't Calm the Storm so Stop Trying. What You Can do is Calm Yourself. The Storm Will Pass'

Heart, Wood, Love, Wooden, Old
I am not quite sure where the quote above came from, but I quite like it. There has been alot on the radio today about mental health week. Concerns from some about how people are coping with the current situation, the lockdown, social distancing, shielding. Life is certainly putting a strain on many people at the moment.

It is important that we all look out for each other. As a Ranger Guide leader, we have been holding regular weekly on-line chats. An opportunity for the girls to catch-up with each other and provide a break to the lockdown situation. It also allows the leaders a chance to check up on everyone and make sure that they are all okay. For these teenagers, this regular meeting keeps them engaged with the familiar structure of Ranger Guides giving them ideas and suggestions for activities outside of school. The girls are from a wide area, some live on local farms, some in the City but what they all have in common is they are part of a worldwide organisation where all the members are going through a similar experience. Where-ever they are located in the UK or the world.

I also work with two veterans to host the newly-formed Carlisle Veterans Hub, an online get-together scheduled weekly. Open to any veteran who wants the familiarity of the friendly banter and military craic. This should have been established as a physical group with its first meeting scheduled just after lockdown, so we had to think on our feet and put something virtual together. It has been slow to get going but the regularity of the meetings has provided an escape for some. New connections have been formed and it has provided an outlet for some under strain. 

As I type this there is more and more support being advocated for people to access. Noticing those signs in someone you care about is important. A change in behaviour or withdrawing from the world, excessive fear or anxiousness, changes in eating habits, long lasting sadness or irritability - all these symptoms may be exacerbated by the current lockdown situation. It is times like these when we need to look our for others and check they are okay. It's why we continue to have our weekly Museum team chat too. So why not pick up the phone, chat to someone you know and check they are okay?




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