Thursday afternoon, I was leaving work and on my way to yoga. I was on the phone with my mom during the commute to my yoga practice. She informed me that Montgomery County was in a state of emergency due to COVID-19. As I was on the phone with her, I received a text from a friend informing me that an event 2 weeks away was postponed until further notice due to COVID-19. At that moment, my boyfriend clicked in to inform me of the nation-wide cancellations due to COVID-19. And then “bing!” an email comes in from the Archdiocese stating that Sunday mass was no longer an obligation due to COVID-19. WHAT?! For those Catholics out there, you can understand this mind-blogging news. It felt like the world was ending.

And so, I’m off the phone with my mom, I put my phone in my purse so that I could avoid seeing or hearing anymore bad news. It’s 6:15, yoga starts at 6:30 and the doors are still locked. I’m thinking, oh great, yoga is probably cancelled too! Panic is festering inside of me. I keep standing there waiting to see if the yoga teacher is simply running a little behind schedule. Around 6:25, I see this jolly woman across the street waving to me. It was her! My yoga teacher! She skips across the street smiling and saying “hello”. I told her of my panic that yoga was cancelled due to the COVID-19. She looked at me with a warm smile and deep eye contact as she stated, “we’re not going anywhere”.

Those words were so incredibly reassuring. I smiled with tears in my eyes thanking her. I noticed where my panic was coming from. It’s been a fear of mine since a little girl and it is a fear of millions of people in this world. It’s the worst panic of all: fear of being alone. I was panicking that I was going to lose everyone. Well, my yoga teacher eased that panic and fear through her kind and simple words, “we’re not going anywhere”.

Mr. Rogers is always full of inspiration, reassurance and wisdom. He has a famous quote, “When I was a boy and would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers, you will always find people who are helping'”.

Look deep inside of you and notice the fear. Don’t judge it. Simply notice it and try to identify what it is caused by. Once you can figure it out, look around you, find a helper and ask for help.

For me, I can feel my fear of being alone as an increasing issue during this time of panic. And so, I am trying to work on connecting with others around me in anyway that I can while also remaining safe and protected from the virus. I am reaching out to friends, family, colleagues, my fellow support group peers, Church and my yoga teachers and fellow yogis!

And equally as important, become a helper! We all need helpers and we are all capable of being helpers. Helping others helps us with our feelings of helplessness (say that 5 times fast! LOL)! Check out the Emotional Wellness Tab for tips and strategies to become a helper. Check out the Self-Affirmations Tab for inspiration and reassurance during this tough time.

I’ll end with this… you are not alone. I am not alone. I have you and you have me. I AM NOT GOING ANYWHERE.