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“Are you out of your mind? You’re not old enough to go to a climate change demonstration. What do you even know about the climate? Besides, we’re in the middle a pandemic.
When the body is injured, it begins the healing process despite the ongoing physical injury. Our minds should be no different. Right now – amidst a pandemic, economic strain, political tension, rising mental illness, and more – we are desperately in need of emotional healing, despite the many challenges ahead.
It’s not like we need all of the breaking news headlines to know that things right now are super-tense. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been approached with questions or concerns about how parents can keep their heads in these trying political times. And with every passing day, there is much more at stake.
Things might seem kind of awful lately.
Every news headline, from every corner of American ideology, feels pretty depressing. We are subjected to nihilistic rants or apocalyptic predictions. When do we smile? When our late-night talk-show hosts use our negativity for comedic material. I’ll admit it.
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According to a 2017 report by the American Psychological Association, 2/3 of Americans feel stressed about the future of our nation, including a majority of each Democrats and Republicans.
Two news stories caught my eye over the past two weeks, and both filled me with sadness and dread.
The first was the heart wrenching story that detailed the pain of a family whose seemingly otherwise healthy teen daughter died from the Influenza Virus. She died from “the flu.
Why would any parent bring their kid to a child psychiatrist?
Well, I’m a child psychiatrist and the most common reason parents bring their kids to see me in my clinical practice is because they are worried about certain behaviors and want help and advice in evaluating their child.
“They’re rude.”
That’s what my daughter’s friend said to me last week as she glanced over my shoulder at the newspaper. On the cover was a photo of Mitch McConnell, newly victorious in his quest for re-election, and by virtue of his victory, the Senate majority leader.
I looked up at my daughter’s friend.