The impact of social distancing.

The impact that social distancing has on our lives are much bigger than what it seems on face value at this stage.

17

JUNE, 2020

Triggers

Well-being

#socialdistancing

See beyond the barrier.

By forcing down social distancing in society created not only a physical isolation but also isolation on an emotional level for most people. People started to feel isolated from each other as they are not allowed to touch each other. Physical touch is very important aspect for many people and a way of communication.  The well-known Pastoral Family Therapist Garry Chapman referred to it as one of the Love Languages that humans have, and I think most humans have, in his book Five love languages.

Furthermore, did the wear of face masks meant a loss of face-to-face social interaction among each other. People can not see if other people are smiling to them or what the emotions are towards them. That creates a form of emotional numbness. Many people came to me that says that they are in a society that is dead. It feels as if they are among robots because they cannot see other people’s facial expressions.

The physical distancing makes single people feel more lonely/isolated from society. Social distancing is leading to heightened feelings of anxiety and depression amongst the general public. Further does it create feelings such as a loss of self-worth, loss of motivation and a loss of meaning in daily life. This is a problematic aspect that many single people struggle with long before the lockdown started and by bringing in a social distancing did create an emotional isolation in many people’s lives. The latest research shows that those lonely people are more likely to become ill, experience cognitive decline and die earlier than those with more social lives. 

It is therefore important to find new ways to interact with each other. The new ways of interacting will never be able to replace normal natural ways of interaction.

We must make use of the technology to have some form of interaction:

• Whatsapp is one of the applications that can be used to communicate with each other. Groups can also be created where people can not only form support groups but just chat groups to chat about anything, from intense aspects experience daily to general small talk. (Also Telegram, Messenger, and many more)

• Another effective way is by video calling. There are various apps available such as Duo, Zoom and many more where a few people can talk with each other on the same call. This is very effective as people can see each other’s facial expressions which is hide away by the masks that we are forced to wear in public.

Before corona[virus], we may have taken our social interactions for granted and been the kind of person who said: ‘I’m terrible at keeping in touch’. Suddenly, people are becoming aware of how important it is to stay in contact with their fellow humans. Whether it’s by phone or in person.

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