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Ask A Pro Live: Life after Social Isolation
It's safe to say that 2020 has been a weird year. It has been a lot and going into social isolation has weighed really heavy on people. Now most of us are at a stage where restrictions are lifting, which brings a whole new set of concerns and challenges for many people.
This chat will most likely be quite broad as COVID-19 and social isolation has impacted people in different ways. Whether it's difficulty getting back into routine, social anxiety, weight gain, depression, study stress or work - we got you.
This month we are inviting our special guest Dr Joe to the forum to chat about how to stay well post social isolation. Read on to learn a little bit about our guest:
''Dr Joe is a psychologist who has worked for many years with young people in Australia doing face to face counselling.
He is passionate about the strengths of young people and working with them to get through tough times.
Though he ran with bulls for fun and nearly died in Spain, being European he has a very real and rational fear of sharks''
It's going to be a great conversation and I'm sure we will all walk away from it feeling better equipped to cope. We'll be chatting live on the 23rd of July so put it into your calendar and we'll see you there!
Join us live on the 23rd of July from 7:00pm - 9:00 pm (AEDT).
question and clearly caring about others too
– it is about striking a balance. Have you thought through the possibilities?
Worst case scenario- If you are young and healthy, catching covid is not an issue for many – NOT ALL – young people. Some young people have died globally but the % is tiny. So if you get it you will most likely be fine.
But who do you live with – are they older/vulnerable – if so that needs careful consideration. And as I said above I care about community – I don’t want to pass it on to strangers either of course. I recommend leaving the house and exercising with care. It is good that you are a bit stressed as that what is needed to avoid risks. Strike a balance.
Thank you so much Joe @GuestPsychologist - I feel like time has absolutely flown by tonight, and we are up to our final question. I think I can speak for everyone here when I say I have learned so much tonight and am so incredibly grateful to you for sharing your time and wisdom with us!
This last question is a big one, and something I know is playing on the mind of a lot of us, and so many young people around the world.
How can we cope with worries about the future, such as fears about future outbreaks or not being able to find a job due to the effects on the economy?
I feel so sorry for people who are trying to find jobs and work experience. Sometimes I get worried about whether more experienced people will be offered positions over people who are just starting out such as young people, people who have just graduated or are still studying. I think the number of jobs that are being advertised are less than the number of people who are looking for work.
Many people have been coming on the forums to say that they've lost their job or have been stood down. It's a really hard time for everyone. 😞
Thank you to everyone - I loved chatting tonight - so much wisdom and courage and strength -
"you have survived 100% of your toughest days so far" - TY for that one I'll remember it! Keep doing what you are doing - keep looking for support - keep supporting each other.
Good night from Gadigal country in the Eora nation in this big brown southern land. It was a pleasure connecting!
Thanks so much for chatting with us @GuestPsychologist! I've loved reading your responses and have learned a lot through this discussion. 🙂
Goodnight!
Thank you so much everyone- especially @GuestPsychologist for being here tonight!
How can we cope with worries about the future, such as fears about future outbreaks or not being able to find a job due to the effects on the economy? My answer to this is that worrying about it won't change it. This isn't a quick fix, but learning that worrying hurts nobody but myself, and takes away opportunities for me to do my best. There are people who are much more qualified to sort out these issues than I am... but that's as far as I can get with this sort of reasoning
I think you are asking how do you cope with anxiety and anxiety about money. You are describing anxiety – the most common mental health problem in Australia. Fear and anxiety can be crippling and we need to learn how to manage it. This is hard because we are hardwired from cave person times to need anxiety. It keeps us alive crossing a road and walking home at night. It can get out of control though if we do not learn to let anxious thought go, let them leave our heads, they are just thoughts. Our thoughts are not us. Humans have survived (anxiously) through many economic slumps, joblessness, and health scares (such as AIDS/HIV). We have gotten through them all – I expect this will be no different. For those unemployed the government is paying more than it ever has through Centrelink. It is not enough but it is more than before covid.
@GuestPsychologist so true - so important to remember that humans have survived and overcome so much, I've been thinking about my grandparents a lot lately, they lived through the depression and wars and more changes than I can even imagine.
I'm sad to say that that's all we have time for from Dr Joe @GuestPsychologist tonight - thank you so much for being so incredibly generous with your time tonight! I have learned so much from the discussion here and we appreciate it so much!
Totally epic @Tay100 !! Thanks so much to you and everyone else who made this chat so awesome!! @Tay100 @WheresMySquishy @StormySeas17 @Bananatime04 @Hozzles @Saltwaterdreamtime @MB95 @Lost_Space_Explorer5 you're all total legends!!
No worries at all @Bananatime04 , it's actually really impressive to read that and I'm glad you were able to step away when you needed to. Take care of yourself It was a great chat so definitely a good one to catch up on another time
Thank you so much to everyone who's taken part in tonight's chat- I have learned so much and will definitely be coming back to this one to read again in the future.
If tonight's chat has brought up any tough feelings for you, make sure you do reach out (sorry for the pun!) and chat to someone, here's a few resources:
Beyond Blue have a dedicated coronavirus mental wellbeing support service that you can check out here , it is available 24/7. You can call them on
Or there's a web chat option here
You can also call Lifeline on 13 11 14
Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or https://kidshelpline.com.au/
cheers @Janine-RO and @GuestPsychologist and everyone, my first GR Live was epic 🙂
@GuestPsychologist right, i see; how do we deal with the fact that the world won't operate the same way again- for example, like more people will work from home, business and healthcare changes, for example?
Me Too.
I don’t think so it will continue – there will be a little adjustment – but everyone will feel less stressed and less on edge once this crap passes and it will. We need to think it through now though. What are we stressed? My biggest stress is passing covid on to my old and unwell parents. I can’t do that because they live in Europe. I'm healthy enough I should be fine if I get it. So I have very little to stress about as my loved ones are far far away. I stress about not seeing them if they get sick but there's no point in that either it is out of my control. But I don’t want to pass it on to anyone in the community either so I try to take the advice and socially distance, wash hands etc. Everything passes. "This too shall pass" is a very wise very old saying and its true.
@GuestPsychologist I'm sorry to hear about your parents! One thing my psychologist always says to me is 'things have a way of working out in the end' and I think it's true. We will always find a way to work things out. He's said this to me with friendships, study, jobs, etc. I now believe him and it's a very nice feeling.
Acceptance seems like such a hard thing to do, but I get that once you stop fighting the stream, stuff gets easier. It doesn't mean you're okay with the bad thing, but that you won't give it any more of your time
great try finding the PDF.
Acceptance takes practise - when you run for a bus but miss it by a few seconds are you angry all day - or do you you accept and remind yourself there will be more social distancing on the next one 🙂
@GuestPsychologist I love that phrase. 🙂 Another similar saying I've read online is 'I've survived 100% of my worst days' or 'Whenever you're going through a bad day just remember, your track record for getting through bad days, so far, is 100%; and that's pretty damn good.'