Viral Vicissitudes

The COVID 'Combine': Playgrounds of the Pandemic - Part 2        As summer is coming to a close and school is about to start (in some form or another, depending on your community), many gyms remain closed and the few outdoor pools that have been open will no longer remain available. As we await the reopening of gyms, indoor basketball courts, ice rinks, and other fitness facilities, I return you to a post from August 3rd ("Playgrounds of the Pandemic") in an attempt to further stimulate your imagination and provoke you to action (so this is also the second part of "think and do" I mentioned here a few days ago).         The NFL Scouting Combine began in earnest in 1982, when NFL Scouting, Inc. first coordinated a camp for its members in Tampa, Florida, featuring a series of physical drills and challenges. Each drill showcases the key physical attributes of the prospective player's position. The results in turn allow the scouts to predict the ...

A Story of a Pandemic, Protests, Pandora, and...hope(?!) The world as it is : Imagine that you live in a coastal town exposed to Hurricane Laura, or a city besieged by protests, or county with rising COVID cases. Even if experienced vicariously via the evening news, it is tempting to believe we are living in a maelstrom of mayhem and malevolence unparalleled in history. It's as if the story of "Pandora's Box" is playing out in 'real time': "...and the urge to open the box overcame her. Horrible things flew out of the box, including greed, envy, hatred, pain, disease...all of life's miseries had been let out into the world..." (after which Pandora belatedly slammed down the lid).  The world as it was : Fifty years ago, in just over four minutes the Temptations sang the lyrics written for them by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong (still one of my favorites), summing up what we were then (and, of course, now ) experiencing: "...people moving...

Me, Myself, and I: COVID CBT               Self-Talk: We all do it (come on, admit it, you talk to yourself, I do!). Based on my dialogue with many of you as well as what I have read the past few months, we are all probably doing more of it these days, in part due to the increase in time we are spending in isolation (whether this is in turn due to 'stay in place' or self-selected). In any case, we may as well do it right, to our own benefit and on behalf of others.        Hearing Our Own Voice: We can all relate to statements like "...I did this to myself...I got myself worked up...I'm too hard on myself...I have got to get myself motivated!..." These and a vast amount of others you can come up with that are more 'personalized' (what are your own 'go to' statements?) represent our appreciation of the relationship between self-talk, feelings, and outward behavior (or lack thereof). In Cognitive Restructuring and Cognitive Behavior T...

...Intimate Interactions - Part 2        So, if the recipe for interpersonal relationships and personal thriving calls for frequent hugs and the prospects for getting them 'resupplied' remains uncertain (see August 22nd post here), what are acceptable substitutes ? While the analogy of a food recipe to our current COVID circumstances is limited, I hope to provoke some thought and action regarding the opportunities to sustain intimacy in these challenging times. After considerable thought myself, I offer you the following three categories (or 'ingredients'):     Pandemic Politeness: "...well mannered, civilized" This concerns not whether but how we physically distance ourselves. Think, for example, of what you do while standing on that X six feet from the next person -- do you look down or straight ahead, isolating yourself while murmuring some negative mantra? Or can you instead give others a 'thumbs up' while simultaneously sustaining eye cont...

Properly Distanced, Curtailed Contact, Intimate Interactions - Part 1        Early in this pandemic the term 'social distancing', of course, emerged, which eventually became synonymous with the actual experience of being physically distanced (equal to or greater than six feet, for some scientifically derived reason). So one of the casualties of COVID we have all come to experience all too well is the decrease in physical contact that we usually associate with casual encounters  (e.g., hand shakes, high fives, fist bumps, etc.) as well as more intimate interactions (primarily, but not exclusively, hugging).  There have been (dire) predictions from many social commentators that hand shakes, fist bumps, and even elbow touches, let alone hugs, may become part of our societal lore for a few generations in the future.         Just what are the social and psychological ramifications of social distancing, of curtailed physical contact? This...

No Rest for the Weary: the Larry Lee Invitational!        As the pandemic persists, we have witnessed and experienced the results of the wide variance with which communities, states, and countries have practiced 'pandemic hygiene', ranging from physical distancing, hand washing, and other habits becoming part of our new normal. As the rate of COVID cases increased, government officials first encouraged, then mandated many of the foregoing measures to stem the tide. As the numbers then began to wane, the call was then to 'open up' (understandable from both a psychological and economic perspective), after which we have witnessed a wide range of variance with which individuals have continued to comply with earlier hygienic practices (in contrast to those we have seen being 'reckless'). Which has in turn contributed to our most recent experience of a second 'surge'        The Larry Lee Invitational, while not born in such a dramatic crucible, nonethel...

Piercing the Pandemic: Knightly/Daily Virtues        Just where are our 'knights in shining armour'?! Whence shall he (or she) come to rescue us from our pitiful pandemic predicament? While the missteps of leadership, repeated calls for 'pulling back', and false promises of a vaccine have understandably caused many of us to become cynical and otherwise weary (see August 8th post here), I am here to provoke you with this bold declaration: We are not powerless; we are not doomed! For chivalry, gallantry, and other knightly virtues are not dead, but are present among us and actually reside within each of us. While a survey of earlier and more recent literature arrive at various compilations, the following is a fairly comprehensive contemporary profile of characteristics that you one would aspire to if your goal was to be 'knighted' (both narrowly defined and liberally applied to our current circumstances): Courage - "...the ability to do something that ...

Pandemic Prescience: Precious Products        "If only I had seen this coming, I would have..."      Anyone who has been a long term financial investor has endured the fluctuations of the market, reflected in their bottom lines of monthly or quarterly statements. Most financial advisers counsel us not to get too anxious about the lows or too giddy about the highs, assuming you are in it for the long haul. If you are a 'day trader', on the other hand, you have either constructed or bought into highly complicated algorithms to predict and respond to the minute to minute signs of financial market trends.        I found myself reflecting on the foregoing economic and psychological dynamics as different products became more valuable early in the pandemic. Early on, we saw toilet paper, bottled water (as if we were going to run out of water), and all things  related to PPE jumping off the store shelves. Recently, of course, supply ha...

Imperious, Impervious: Julie Andrews, Where Art Thou?        And just where is Mary or Maria when you need them?!         "And the imperious, vain, starched, miraculous Mary Poppins arrived at the Banks household, blown by the wind, her landing softened by her magical umbrella..." cites one review. Perhaps with less aplomb or mystique, Maria arrived at the von Trapps for similar reasons (on the surface to aid the children, but eventually we discover deeper reasons). While she takes longer to gain traction, Maria has her own methods in challenging the authority of the household and win the hearts of the children (and that of Captain von Trapp, of course). A number of interesting parallels (at least to me) present themselves in "Mary Poppins" and "Sound of Music", some of which I have been utilizing actively in my professional practice and timely, given our current circumstances.        Going beyond the obvious common denomi...

Feeling Weary? Try a Little Tenderness🎜(and exercise, of course!)        "Temporary loss of strength and energy"; "Causing one to feel tired or bored"; "Having one's patience, tolerance, or pleasure exhausted". These are a few of the ways in which Webster and others have defined weary , weariness , and wearisome , emotional vocabulary I have heard and used myself at a higher than normal rate over the past four months or so. Prior to a 'pandemic panacea' (i.e., highly effective therapeutics and/or vaccine), I offer you here just a few ways in which you can at least effectively mitigate (a more common verb form lately) the experience of weariness.        Make/Create - Pinterest and Beyond: The internet, of course, is replete with ideas to provoke your imagination and creativity. There is something for everyone, ranging from recipes to art, to more involved projects for those with more time and space. But even in the confines of our (she...

Playgrounds of the Pandemic        About five months ago millions of people were challenged to maintain their physical fitness regimens as private gyms, public parks, pools, tennis/basketball courts, and other facilities were closed almost overnight. While they have partially and gradually re-opened, many of us continue to be apprehensive about fully utilizing them again ("use at your own risk as playground equipment has not been completely decontaminated"). For an unfortunate number, this has resulted in curtailing or abandoning their fitness regimens altogether, at least temporarily. This is not only unhealthy (both physically and psychologically) but completely unnecessary. The opportunities to maintain most fitness routines (with the exception of being able to swim/dive in an Olympic sized pool while closed) are only limited by our imaginations and willingness.        Necessity, the mother of all inventions: Almost as quickly as the yellow ta...