COVID-19 COMMUNITY RESOURCES
D
uring this COVID-19 pandemic, NASW-NJ has created a series of community-facing resources and webinars designed to connect the public with licensed social workers who can offer support and tools to those who are struggling. The hallmark of these efforts are our free Community Conversation webinars, where a Licensed Clinical Social Work leads an online public discussion related to some aspect of coping with COVID-19. To date, four such Community Conversations have been held, with nearly 4,000 people participating live nationwide. Archived recordings of each Community Conversation are available on YouTube and on the NASW-NJ website. These programs include:
Parents, Kids, and Mental Health During COVID-19 Routine is an important part of family functioning. Lack of routine often creates stress and anxiety for the family. Pat Spencer, LCSW explores how the COVID-19 crisis has impacted family routines and structures and how parents and children can alleviate stress and regain a sense of normalcy amidst the crisis. Adolescents and Young Adults: Parenting During COVID-19 COVID-19 has caused a rise in symptoms of depression and anxiety in our society, including feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, and loss. Dr. Widian Nicola, LCSW offers a set of strategies for adolescents and young adults to manage their emotional response to the crisis and a separate set of strategies for parents to help their children in the process of coping.
Practice of Mattering in the Time of The Social Distancing Mattering—the need to feel valued and to add value to others—is crucial to the human experience. Social distancing can impact our understanding of mattering and our sense of esteem and value. In this webinar, Dr. Tawanda Hubbard, LCSW discusses how we can continue to feel a sense of value, of mattering, during the COVID-19 crisis.
How to Navigate Grief, Loss, and a New Normal During COVID-19 COVID-19 has created a sense of grief and loss across our nation, not just due to death and illness of loved ones, but to loss of connection, physical contact, work, normalcy, and important rituals like birthday celebrations, proms, graduations, weddings, and more. Crystal Zelman, LCSW
explores how we are all impacted by grief during this crisis and ways to help cope with the experience of grief and loss.
Tools for Parents During COVID-19
Parenting can be stressful to navigate even in the best of times, but with COVID-19, the challenges are even greater. Juan Rios, LCSW, CSOTS and Jennifer Thompson, MSW have an informal discussion with social workers about parenting during COVID-19. Together they provide advice and helpful tips to make parenting during a pandemic a little easier. Upcoming Community Conversations, scheduled and planned, include: • Treating Individuals with Co-Occurring Conditions During COVID-19 (June 3) • Mental Health and COVID-19 (TBD) • The Impact of COVID-19 on Caregivers (TBD) “Do you have an idea for a future Community Conversation? Interested in leading an online discussion? ” Email us at jfeldman.naswnj@socialworkers.org to share your idea and explore how we can bring it to the community.
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