Comments

1

There are online support groups. And there are ways to connect with people via the internet. If you are able to get online (like to write this), there are ways to connect with people, even strangers.

https://adaa.org/adaa-online-support-group
https://www.verywellmind.com/best-online-anxiety-support-groups-4692353

Here's ways to connect (talk to stangers) online group, too.
https://talkwithstranger.com/free-chat-rooms/chat-with-strangers
https://strangermeetup.com/

2

I feel you, that is awful op, aside from what Christina Rae mentioned, all I can offer is get out in nature maybe as much as you can. You can still talk to people in person with safe distance. Hope you stay well, and get the support you deserve.

3

I third that emotion. This won't last forever. Read something, doodle puppies, watch cute cats on YouTube, ANYTHING to keep yourself distracted. And yes, you can still go for a walk and talk to people at a safe distance. Now is the perfect time for people to reach out to each other even if it's just with a kind smile and some small talk. You just might find that many people really appreciate having a neighbor to talk to. Hang in there, it will get better!

4

this pandemic is brought to us by unrestrained, globalized capitalism. surviving it is an act of resistance and rebellion. if we come out of it determined to reduce our consumption, to focus on community and relationships that matter and to cease cooperating with the machine that is doing its best to destroy us we win and they lose. your survival through this disaster is an act of resistance. RESIST!

5

I support Christina, Medium, Aurelius and especially escapefromChicago, since I too escaped from Chicago, where I battled terrible depression and in the middle of one of its most dense neighborhoods, felt I had no friends.

You are right to avoid social media ... for the most part, Twitter and Facebook are a shit show of accusations and self righteousness and confusion and fear. Stay away!

Gravitate toward kindness. If there is any way possible, download ebooks from the library, anything by Pema Chodron or Mary Oliver. Look for writings by or about the same online if you can't download their books right now. (The latest Pema book "Welcoming the Unwelcome" is hella good!) It can be super hard to read an actual novel or other book when you are depressed, but look for something in short chunks - essays or chapters in 1-3 page bites, that make reading seem do-able. I wish I could send you Margaret Renkl's "Late Migrations" which is a lovely exploration of humanity, told in very short chunks like that. I love being in the same world as authors like this.

I hope you are near a city park, or even if not, head out for a walk each day around your hood and create your own mental garden out of neighbor's flowers, shrubs and trees. Five minutes. Check in on them every damn day, say hello, ask how they are doing, watch them explode in joy and grow bigger each hour, trying to reach the sun. On every third day, reverse your direction around the block, or head down a street that begins with "F" or "T" or "S" (and feel free to skip along and sing, Fuck This Shit!) The Portland greenery and bloomery is such a gift. Let us all REJOICE that we are not in fucking Akron where everything is still brown and desolate.

If none of that sounds doable right at this second, that is OK. Just know that we support you and love you.


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