Amid the coronavirus pandemic, there are some rules that have become popularized that most people are following. We have all seen the “wash your hands” signs and the “six feet apart” ones too! The heart behind these rules is great and they are intended to help save people and keep us safe.

Moving forward, how do we interact socially with these rules?

One of the biggest challenges during lockdown and stay at home orders is the social isolation for some people. For many, their work isn’t considered “essential” and they have nothing to do but stay inside all day.

Humans are the most social creature to ever exist!

Everything about our brains is designed for other people! Our brains devote massive resources to our social identities and interaction with our families and “tribes”. In other words, isolation hurts people over long periods of time.

One mom posted a picture that she thought would blow up in her face.

As people crave social interaction more and more, they are finding ways around the restrictions! To be honest, Zoom and Skype just don’t cut it sometimes. You need to be around people. On April 30th, Stephanie decided to take to Facebook to post what she thought.

Getting together with some friends, Stephanie planned a “social distancing hangout”.

Sitting six feet or further apart in her driveway with a few of her friends, Stephanie had a little get together! More than that, she decided that she was going to post it to Facebook and possibly face backlash from the community.

“I was scared to post this photo.
Because although we are following social distancing rules, there’s a lot of opinions right now about what’s right and what’s wrong.
But here’s the deal: This is what’s right for me. Friends, six feet of space, and fresh air.”

People are responding to the post in their own ways.

Stephanie knew that there could be some backlash, even including ” I was scared to post this” as the opening line to the post. Her hope, however, was for people to either agree or disagree respectfully.

“A lot of condemnation is happening online and it’s strange. We’re all fighting the same fight, but we all feel vastly different about how to handle it. And instead of letting people (safely) choose their own way—or post their own thoughts—we’re going on the attack,” she wrote in her post.

Whether or not people agreed with her, she felt she needed to act to help with her depression.

Prolonged periods of social isolation can worsen mental health issues and exacerbate the symptoms. She said:

“I’m posting this because that driveway meetup saved my depression that day. And I am proud to have friends who show up with kindness—even during a pandemic,”

Regardless of if you are doing this, we can all agree on one thing.

When this is all over, it will be a good day. We all want to see our friends and family again and get back to “normal”.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

https://www.facebook.com/TinklesHerPants/photos/a.251911365510812/556014755100470/?type=3&theater

Source: Facebook, Relieved