All we can do in this time of uncertainty is to support each other and get through this together

The Coronavirus has brought the world to a standstill!

This microscopic invader has curtailed every strand of our lives. Nothing could have prepared us for this ‘invasion’. We do not know what is going to happen next. What is certain is that the healthcare sectors in most countries are overwhelmed.

In these uncertain times, I am reminded of a former patient. A retired soldier and World War II veteran, he frequently said, “For me every day is a bonus.When we went out into the trenches,we did not know what would happen next. Therefore, I treasure every additional day of life I have.” Fighting this virus, the invisible enemy, we too seem to be living, one day at a time!

With the lockdown necessary to contain this dreaded virus, our lives have been ‘put on hold’. If there is an alternative, it is, at a cost. If one gets infected, anything could happen, because the course of this dreaded disease, is unpredictable.

This virus does not discriminate either – it would infect you whether you are a prince or pauper. The elderly are most vulnerable, but the young, fit and healthy are not spared. In the absence of definitive treatment, the uncertainty of not knowing when this devastation will end is as unsettling as the virus infection itself.

With the lockdown, lifestyles are disrupted and family ties shattered. Children living away are unable to visit their parents. Grandparents are prevented from seeing their grandchildren - no hugs and kisses. With isolation, loneliness is thrust upon some. There are others who want to know when solitude would be a choice, again.

In the UK, there are daily COVID-19 briefings. In these sessions, leading health professionals, scientists and statisticians are tabling graphs and making projections, but even these experts do not know for certain, when the lockdown would end. Politicians, fearful of a second wave, do not want to commit until the evidence for containment of the virus, is absolutely certain.

In the meantime, news bulletins spell out the daily death tolls and this incessant bad news adds to the anxiety, leading to tiredness and fatigue.

Psychologists say, uncertainty is unsettling, because, human nature demands predictability. People count on predictability in daily life and in the structures around them, to function. When they don’t have it, they become uncomfortable and insecure.

“The things we rely on for stability in our lives are all under siege,” said Melanie Greenberg, psychologist and author of the book, ‘The Stress-Proof Brain’. “Our brains are designed to predict what’s going to happen next and try to prepare for it. In this case, the response isn’t that clear.”

“Sometimes we can calm ourselves down by thinking about our history of successfully coping with something similar. As Coronavirus is novel, there’s nothing like that here. That’s even more unsettling ,” Green berg said.

Consequently, many people are worrying about their health, their lives, their loved ones and how to care for their loved ones, if infected with the virus. Understandably, there is considerable anxiety too, about separation and even the possibility of loved ones dying of the infection, alone.

Knowing that they are facing this threat, for many, the primary aim is to avoid getting the infection. Others may worry about the effect of a prolonged lockdown on the economy, the country, politics or society at large. Some don’t know whether they will have a job to go back to or a business to reopen.

How the world as a whole or a country in particular, responds to the coronavirus crisis will be defining. This moment for all is an opportunity to reflect and ask the fundamental questions about our lives, our values, attitudes and even the nature of our realities.

I am reminded of this quote from J. R. Tolkien’s ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I and so do all who live to see such times,” said Gandalf. “But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

I doubt any of us would disagree with Frodo, but it is Gandalf’s challenge that we now have to address.

We have no choice about the time we have been given, but we do have a choice about what we do with it. Let’s support each other and get through this together.

“Alone we can do so little: together we can do so much”-Helen Keller