COVID Grief

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Romans 12:15

In having a discussion the other day with a client who has heightened anxiety due to the presence of COVID-19 in the past year, I recognized symptoms of grief. My clients who suffer from anxiety have been particularly hard hit by the confounding effects of COVID. It also dawned on me that collectively, as a society, we are grieving.

We are grieving losses that we experienced due to the presence of the Coronavirus, but we are also grieving another loss- what could have been. The things that we missed due to COVID. We are at times sad, angry, and feeling helpless about our current state. In the absence of a tangible villain, we often lash out at one another. The increases in violence over the past year have been well documented, as well as being truly inexplicable rationally.   We have a collective sense of grief, but we have no specific common loss to mourn.  

Indeed, many people have lost loved ones directly as a result of COVID-19. I know several who have perished. However, for the most part, it is not the loss of a friend or family member to the disease as much as our loss of freedom, and our lost sense of control.

So, in a sense, we are all, in some ways, grieving certain losses. Perhaps just understanding that we all have experienced SOME kind of loss can get us into a more empathic approach to dealing with our collective grief.

Maybe that is the common bond that can unite us just a little better these days.

Prayer: Lord, help us to mourn with those who mourn- all of us, Amen