Getting Through the Next Few Weeks

by Kathleen DesMaisons, PhD

I suspect that many of us have been reading and reading and reading. We had a new person on the FB page post about feeling anxious and being drawn to chocolate. She talked about wanting to "self medicate."  This unleashed a whole string of agreement. And yes, this is what we do in addiction. We get scared or overwhelmed and we use something to "hold" the feelings. It works for a little. We create amnesia and anesthesia and we feel better until it wears off. and then is the hard part because when it wears off, we are more scared or more overwhelmed. So what we think is comforting us is actually making things worse.

    the hard part is what to do when we are in the midst of this because honestly we cannot think our way out of the dilemma. this skill of knowing what to do, and then doing it comes over time. It emerges as we do the steps. Increment by ice,ent, we learn more.  I am thinking it will be helpful to have a crib sheet for emergencies - what to do when it is bigger than we have learned solutions for.

    The deal with the Corona Virus is scary because we have not dealt with it before. And because some people are particularly vulnerable and some people are dying. But there are some very interesting variables. We know it is a virus. It is a virus that has to get into our mouths and noses and then go into our lungs. If we don't breath it in, it can't go into our lungs. That part is pretty simple.

    this means we stay away from people who are coughing out the germs. And we make sure we get the germs off our hands so we don't pass them into our mouths and noses. This actually is pretty straightforward. Washing our hands gets rid of the germs. Watch this video, it is VERY helpful in showing how this works. Get everyone in your household to watch this video. You do not need hand sanitizer or antibacterial soap. You just need soap and you can use dish detergent - the very same thing they use to clean ducks that are covered in oil from an oil spill. So you don't need to get scared if all the hand sanitizer is gone because some dope wanted to sell it to to you for $50 a bottle. Use Joy and laugh as you do when you think of all the germs fleeing in the face of it.

    ok, so what else? Don't lick door knobs. Don't hang out with people for a bit while we are "distancing" - that is an epidemiological  term for getting out of the way if someone who doesn't know their germs is spewing them all about. This isn't forever. It is just long enough to slow the expansion of who gets it. It is a safety plan to reduce the intensity of everyone getting sick at once and creating havoc. So it means, you don't go to the chicken wings place for 2 weeks. Or you don't go to the concert even though you bought those great tickets. It means you don't go to church, god is not paying attention to the germs there. It means you don't have play dates or send your kids to day care. It means you don't visit your MIL at the nursing home. Yep, inconvenient, frustrating, boring. But it is important to do it.

    You wash your hands if you go out. Walk in the door and wash your hands. Wash your hands and you stop it. And don't lick door knobs. As I said in my note last week, take vitamin C - 3000 mg a day in 3 doses. If you don't get diarrhea it means your body is using it to zap the viruses around and in you. If you do get diarrhea, take less, it means your immune system is working.

    Practice joy dotting. Notice things around you. Look in the rear view mirror and see your grandson laughing with your dog. Every joy dot enhances your immune system. Every joy dot replaces a fear response in your amygdala.. You new people will learn more about this over time. Old timers know exactly what I mean.

    all rightie, and for those of you who are still having sugar, here is a hot tip. Have desert after lunch and after dinner. Plan for it. Make it steady. It will calm you and you won't be bouncing around with CRAVINGS and reactivity. Just have it. Even have chocolate. Don't be afraid. Make it part of your medicinal intervention. Vitamin C during the day and chocolate after dinner. You might think I am nuts, but honestly, I know exactly what I am saying and why this works. Ask me on the Step One list, ask me on FB. You will be fine. Fill your heart with joy dots, wash your hands and don't like door knobs.