By Anna Russel Article Link
This is the first week I am back in the office and as thrilled as I am to return, it’s also surreal. I came in to my dead plants, the clock that had long since stopped working and a general sense of lifelessness. There are so many clients who have begun sessions in the past year that I have never even met in person. Together, we would be discovering this space and readjusting to being in it together, without masks (safely vaccinated) once again. Admittedly, I was having my own reopening anxiety leading up to this week.
Anna Russel does a beautiful job explaining this shared phenomenon of coming back to the world after this period of withdrawal. There is the very real social anxiety aspect that was alleviated in many ways throughout COVID and now is back with a vengeance as folks worry about what to say, how to act and get stuck in a bit of observer perspective on their own behavior. There is lots of discourse around social atrophy, the very real feeling of having lost a bit of stamina in this arena. It’s been a time of re-evaluation and big life changes for so many. There has been grief and loss that we have largely navigated in isolation and that has left us different versions of ourselves than we were before. How do we bridge the gap?
Russel offers a collection of strategies from various mental health professionals for anxiety management that are useful and largely exposure based. However, I think what was of most value was her insight into COVID having been a time of big questions for all of us, many of which still remain unanswered.
“We have to ask the questions that reëntry asks. They start with practical questions like, Do I wear my mask? Do I say yes to this invitation? Do I take my children even if they’re not vaccinated?” What seem like logistical queries are actually “philosophical and existential questions,” Parker said. “Like, Who are my people? How do I want to spend my time?”