Dr. Jensen & Dr. Wilson’s COVID-19 Update April 20th 2020

Learning to Dance in the Rain

I (Dr. Wilson) have been holding my emotions in tight check over the past weeks until I saw this image. My eldest daughter is the Class of 2020 at McMaster University and my third daughter is the Class of 2020 at Uxbridge Secondary School. 

2.6 billion people in our world are facing some kind of lockdown. The impact of this lockdown on us is immeasurable and involves the loss of so many things: normalcy, safety, connectivity, jobs, income, graduations, proms, weddings, and the loss of loved ones. Our world has lost so many of our citizens. 

It may be helpful for all of us to take a moment this week and name what we are feeling. We would like to suggest you consider naming your feelings as GRIEF. 

Grief is best described as a journey through various stages rather than a static state of mind.

These stages have been well described and many of you may be familiar with them: denial, anger, depression, bargaining, acceptance and finally a return to a meaningful life. We can pass through these stages in any order and we can circle between these stages over the course of a minute or a day or a week. 

 

Understanding these stages can help you make sense of what you are feeling and it can help you empathize how others are feeling and behaving too. The woman who reached across you at the grocery store may be in denial, perhaps it is just too hard to believe that this virus is so bad. Your friend who is furiously posting crazy conspiracy theories on social media is struggling to find meaning as to why we have this virus. The children who are painting beautiful rocks and leaving them around town have clearly landed on acceptance. 

Are you ok? (It’s ok to not be ok) Where are your emotions at right now?

"Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass;

it’s about learning to dance in the rain. "

Vivian Greene, 2006 

 

The key word in this beautiful quotation is “learning.” Dancing in the rain does not come naturally to most of us in the midst of a storm. There is learning to be done. Here are some of our favorite resources that may help us learn to dance together while this collective storm passes. 

 

● East York and North Durham COVID-19 Support Services: provides essential services for seniors and vulnerable populations in North Durham, including transportation, wellness checks, counselling, caregiver support, grocery and pharmacy pick up, Meals on Wheels, homemaking services. Please share with your neighbours and consider accessing on their behalf. 

 

● 211 Ontario: For information and referrals for social and health services, including mental health resources across Ontario, call 211 or 1-877-330-3213. Live web chat is also available. 

 

● ConnexOntario: Adults and frontline workers who are dealing with the realities of COVID-19 can call ConnexOntario at 1-866-531-2600 for support. 

● Joy4All: A toll-free phone line for Seniors to call to listen to a pre-recorded joke, story or poem. Call 1-877-569-4255. We LOVE THIS ONE (even the Dad jokes).

 

● Kids Help Phone: Children and youth 18 and under who need to talk to someone about their mental health can call Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868, for 24/7 phone and text support. 

● Your local church or faith group: Faith leaders are ready to listen to and support you in this time. If you are unsure of who to call, contact St. Paul’s Leaskdale church; they will connect you to a local minister. 

Learning to dance in the rain with you,

Carlye & Jennifer 

Dr. Carlye Jensen is Chief of Staff of Uxbridge Cottage Hospital, and Dr. Jennifer Wilson is President of Uxbridge Health Centre. 

 

Uxbridge resident Kathy Cheung dropped off these caps for us and our ER department. She used fabric from Ghana, where we and local health care colleagues have volunteered for many years. They are reminders to us of the joy we’ve experienced as we’ve learned to dance in other challenging circumstances.