(NBC 26) - As a part of our series ‘The Rebound,’ we talked with experts Wednesday night in a virtual town hall on managing your mental health. The town hall explored a few things you can do right now to help.
“This is a test we're all going through in real time together,” said psychotherapist Charles LaTorre with Bellin Behavioral Health.
Today's normal isn't so normal and experts say the change has created anxiety among us like we've never seen before. The uncertainty of not knowing what's going to happen is keeping our minds restless.
“We know that psychologically, a worried mind is behind time or ahead of time, a quiet mind is a now time,” LaTorre said.
So creating that "now" mindset is something he said you'll need to ask yourself a few questions to do.
“What am I doing? What do I want to do? How can I get through this? What is my vision of what I want to look like getting through this?”
He said it helps create a sense of purpose, something we need to become more resilient during these uncertain times, adding it’s important to understand what you can and can't control. This also goes for your kids.
“We don't have to have the answer. By saying to our children, ‘I feel the same way,’ or ‘I don’t have the answer;’ it helps build upon problem solving you can do as a family together,” said Julie Preder, the director of Mental Health America in Sheboygan County.
If you are worried about your kids not openly processing what's going on right now, here are three questions she suggests you can ask:
“What was good today? What didn't you like today? And what are you looking forward to in the future?” Preder said.
They suggest doing this while you're all sitting around the table for dinner.
They add while these tips may be easier said than done, it's a starting point to help us manage the times.
For more advice and resources, you can watch the full forum here. You’ll also be able to learn about how to identify stressors and triggers to spot domestic abuse.
