Inclusion

Mental Health and Living through the Pandemic

Well COVID-19 has certainly been an experience for us! From March till who knows when, we stay nearby, get out for fresh air and get on Zoom to be with friends and family. Thanks to the hard work of our rabbis, administrators, professional staff, and numerous committee members, we all felt relief to be able to celebrate the High Holy Days and H . aggim. Zooming in may not have been our first choice, but it was better than not having any holidays.

We have never lived under so much stress. How do we see our relatives, including “children” and grandchildren? Why do our “children” suddenly sound like our parents, telling us we can’t see a cousin who has flown here from California to visit her daughter in New Hampshire after a year of not seeing her? The conversation was short – “Guess who is coming to the east coast?” My daughter’s response: “Flying here? Is she quarantining for 14 days?” I doubted she’d even be here for 14 days. “Mom, you can’t see her. That’s it – just tell her.” And so disappeared the plan to see each other. The call went better than I feared. She understood. I could feel my body relax and my breathing slow down.

H . anukkah in a Box

We are excited to offer Days United’s H . anukkah in a Box for the reduced cost of $25 per box.

What’s inside: Designer Star of David Menorah (acrylic parts, nuts and screws, step-by-step instructions for assembling a menorah in two shapes); Modern Art Dreidel (material: wood, includes: 1 colored wooden dreidel plate (with 3 layers), nuts & screws, assembly and game instructions); Stained Glass H . anukkah Art (three adhesive cardboard frames, six thick cellophane cutouts); Color & Read the H . anukkah Story (20 pages of story, illustrations and outlined illustrations for coloring); 44 colorful H . anukkah candles; Days H . anukkah Guide (65 pages of holiday traditions, rituals, blessings, recipes and more). For info, go to https://daysunited.com/hanukkah.

To purchase a box, please contact Me’ir Sherer, DCL, at msherer@templeemunah.org. We have ordered a limited number of boxes; order yours today!

Until that moment I didn’t appreciate how stress affects our bodies. To say it’s a stressful time is an understatement. I am writing this just a few weeks before Nov. 3rd and for me, I have begun to recognize that the news and the upcoming election has caused a lot of stress for me. Most of us have lived through stressful moments – pressure from work, worries about family members, deaths, etc. But somehow you get over it, move through life and again smile, appreciate others, and even laugh. But this stress, unlike most, is not a single incident. It’s been months with probably more months ahead of us.

What steps can we take to manage our stress? I did some research to see how I’ve been managing my pandemic stress. Here are some of the ideas I found: 1. Observe signs from your body. Do you have trouble sleeping? Have you increased your alcohol intake? Do you become easily angered? Do you feel depressed? Is your energy level feeling lower? All these are signs of stress. 2. Talk to your primary health care provider. Let them know how you are feeling and what they can suggest if you need assistance or treatment. 3. Get regular exercise. You don’t need two hours of working out, but even 30 minutes a day can help, especially if you are outside in nature. Call a friend to go with helps too, even with masks and staying six feet away. 4. Explore relaxation programs. Check out the meditation at Emunah. Try some slow breathing exercises. Take time each hour to stand up and move around your house. Check your plants if you can’t go outside. 5. Set goals and priorities. Do what’s most important first and then go on the other things on your “To Do” list. If you write it down at night, when you awake, you can start your day. At the end of each day, write down what you have accomplished – from shampooing your hair, to calling a friend, to writing a note to doing the laundry. Also – make your bed every morning. 6. Stay connected. Remember there are people you know who would be happy to hear from you. Just a short conversation, a quick question, or a longer discussion about whatever you are thinking about is not only helpful for you but also for the person on the receiving end of the phone or FaceTime. I’ve been Zooming with my first cousins making for stronger connections. Sometimes we even have three generations of “Schmeltzers” together This past week, one of my granddaughters created a Kahoot game for us to play, “Who knows Tamar the Best?” The surprise was – it wasn’t her parents or us (her grandparents), but a second cousin of hers who won! We all had a big laugh! Laughter is the BEST MEDICINE! (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/stress/index. shtml) Sandy Miller-Jacobs, Chair, Inclusion Committee

Rosh Hashanah in a Box received a very positive response.