The Holiday Season in 2020 will be like no other we've seen in our lifetimes. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected each one of us if nothing more than being subjected to lockdown mitigation efforts.
As of today, October 25th, 225,000+ have died in the U.S. from the coronavirus. Millions have lost their jobs. Even more people have seen their income take a downward spiral. Tens of millions of people are unable to meet their basic needs of food, shelter and healthcare. To make matters worse, the number of cases across the country is on the rise.
Millions of families across the nation won't be celebrating as normal this year. Families of the deceased will be grieving. There won't be any money for celebrating or giving gifts for a significant number of individuals and families this Holiday Season.
Memories will be like salt poured on an open wound.
Empaths and Highly Sensitive People (HSP) will also be deeply affected. Because empaths and HSPs physically, mentally and emotionally feel the pain of others, this year's Holiday Season will be especially difficult.
As a Highly Sensitive Introvert, I am already experiencing emotional periods of empathy, anxiousness and anger. One of the conclusions I have come to already is that we empaths and highly sensitive people cannot allow our empathy to become depression. We must maintain balance in our lives. We cannot lock ourselves away in hopes of limiting the empathetic pain we feel.
Since this is our 'default' reaction to the pain, we need to realize that this kind of pain will not be overcome with long periods of solitude. Rather, we need to move beyond empathy and move toward compassion.
Empathy is a passive response. Compassion is an active response.
During this Holiday Season we need to engage in activities that will ease the pain of those we share the pain with. When it is within our ability to help someone who is suffering, we must do what we can to lessen that pain.
This is the only way we will eliminate the pain we feel as an empath and a highly sensitive person. Doing this shifts our focus on helping those in need instead of our feelings. There are many ways to help those who are grieving or are in a very real financial bind.
For those grieving:
- Stay in touch to see how they are coping
- Ask what you can do to help them
- Provide words of comfort and encouragement
- Provide the names and phone numbers of professionals that can help them through this difficult time. Offer to make the call for them. Take them to their first appointment.
- If you are able, provide financial assistance ... not as a loan but as a gift.
- Provide a bag or two of groceries
- Anonymously pay a utility bill or two
- Offer to babysit for a day so that person can have a "recuperation day' to do some personal errands or to recharge their physical and emotional batteries
- Offer to run some errands for them
- Help them search for money-making opportunities
