Managers should be supporting employees in finding a healthy work-life balance, something that will likely be a struggle for many people, as these lines have been very much blurred throughout COVID-19.
It takes a lot of work to rewire the brain for safety and to challenge past circumstances.
As parents, we love our children and want the best for them, but we aren’t superhuman. Allow a professional to help them explore some of their feelings about COVID-19.
Children, by nature, are very vulnerable. Therefore, they are very reliant on the adults in their lives to help them. This makes them more susceptible to abuse.
When trauma happens, especially to a child, it is natural for them to envision it as happening to someone else. This is where dissociation comes in. The brain learns that when there is a negative feeling, thought, or event, it can cope by creating distance. Individuals with DID use this emotional and physical distance to get through traumatic experiences.
Children are resilient. If they experience a traumatic event, it does not mean they have to be affected now or later in life. They can recover. It is important to recognize the signs of mental health problems and try to get your child help before these events impact them even more.
When people are faced with intense mental distress, the result can be hard to predict. In some cases, emotional suffering can lead to self-harm. One common example of this is cutting. It is important to note that self-harming is distinct from attempting suicide, or even feeling suicidal.
I often hear people say, “My experience is not as bad as someone else’s experience, so I have no reason to feel this way.” This type of thinking can slow the healing process, because when we invalidate our own trauma, we’re essentially locking ourselves up with our own shame and throwing away the key. It’s important to consider that your trauma is your own.
When we think of bullying, we typically envision the kid stealing lunch money or shoving their peer to the ground at recess. Sure, these are the most common depictions of bullying in pop culture, but bullying doesn’t end when we graduate high school. So how can we handle adults who bully us?
When our partner, friend, or loved one does something that “smells” like past wounds, our defenses go up. The fear of repeating the past comes out looking like anger. Even though we are wanting to be close with our loved ones (spouses, children, friends, and neighbors), old wounds — both emotional and physical — often stand in the way.
