When she was in her late 70s, my late grandmother Henrietta became an unofficial mental health provider. Often housebound because of physical ailments, Grandma needed a volunteer effort she could do from her living room, so she became involved with the Jewish Family Services agency, calling half a dozen seniors every week.
The people she was assigned needed a sympathetic ear, and she’d talk for hours with them — about family, memories and the things that mattered in their lives.
My grandmother was the “service provider,” but she received as much as she gave. She had no formal training or license, just the gift of connecting and the will to help.
I’ve been thinking about my grandmother lately because of our current crisis. Over the last month, I’ve heard more than once that the COVID-19 pandemic, as difficult as it is, will be followed by a second pandemic of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress, born of unprecedented economic dislocation and isolation. We are already seeing it.
Comments (0)