Anxiety, hoarding and panic are what appears on our nightly news as the public reaction to CoronaVirus.
What’s needed is calm, resilience and optimism.
In his address to the nation on coronavirus, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison set as one of his three priorities to “Set Australia up to bounce back stronger when the crisis is over.”
Critical to that national ambition is optimism.
Critical to people living in fear of CoronaVirus, awaiting the results of testing or in self-isolation is a sense of optimism – an expectation that things will work out in the end.
Critical to people living in fear of CoronaVirus, awaiting the results of testing or in self-isolation is a sense of optimism – an expectation that things will work out in the end.
Mental health experts tell me so.
Australian Psychologist Tim Watson-Munro wrote to me today saying “Right now, as never in our lifetimes, we need to remain optimistic.”
Dr Steve Moffic, an American Psychiatrist, also wrote to me today saying “Optimism is essential for mental well-being in a crisis that needs action.”
Optimism won’t save from you from infection but it has a strong role in supporting family, friends and colleagues through the crisis.
At the Centre for Optimism, we have been producing additional materials to support people at home.
- Habits of Optimism https://www.centreforoptimism.com/The-Habits-of-the-Optimist
- Health and Optimism https://www.centreforoptimism.com/Health
- A fun quiz on optimism for people whiling away their time at home. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/firstoptimismquiz
We are also giving away 100 free subscriptions to The Centre for Optimism. People can go to https://www.centreforoptimism.com/Subscribe-to-The-Centre-for-Optimism and use the discount code CORONAOPTIMISM