My daughter, Caitlin, lives in Spain where the pandemic has been very virulent, and where the government has instituted, of necessity they would say, what we in the US would consider a draconian lockdown. It’s been very hard on her for several reasons, not the least of which is her being a single mom (but, thankfully, with good relations with her ex and equal childcare repsonsibilites) away from her birth family and the culture she grew up in. For her, perhaps the worst aspect of how they’re doing it there is the ban on walks in nature, something she relies on heavily for mental-health and -refreshment.
The Spanish lockdown doesn’t allow any passengers in cars making runs for necessities even from the same household, no walking beyond 150 meters from your dwelling for necessities, and, again, no walks in nature even if you’re practicing all the correct protocols. IOW, a true lockdown, the solitary (in Cait’s case, when the boys are with their dad) confinement only ameliorated for the occasional trip to the market (which Cait says is often, ironically and dangerously, overcrowded). In Cait’s case, the markets in her town are all within a block from her house and the Guardia Civil are very vigilant about shooing folks home if they look like they’re loitering outside, even if distancing protocols are being observed.
Short version: Cait is going stir crazy — and not in the flippant sense of merely being bored or somberly wistful — and that’s what prompted this YouTube ask, which she was hesitant to publish but which I think is brilliant (despite her not being a professional actor):
She, of course, realizes that this would not be a small undertaking, given the need to vet any volunteer support personnel, as well as legal challenges regarding professional insurance coverage for caregivers, not to mention the technical aspects of which she (and I) have no grasp whatsoever. In fact, it may be a no-go for any or all of those reasons, but I still think it’s a great idea that should be looked into at the very least, and maybe there’s already a “volunteer therapist/practitioner/pastoral app” out there that someone in the dKos community can clue us into!
Anyway, I told her I’d do what I could to get her query some exposure, so that’s what this is all about. I know her idea may not be perfectly framed, and may even be an impossibility, but the need for relief is great not just in her case but probably for millions of humans across the globe right now, a vast number of whom are certainly worse off than her. Hell, “Covid 19 Social Isolation Syndrome” may even be a thing in the upcoming medical literature.
I will relay any suggestions posted in the comments below to her, and going to the YouTube URL itself would let any of you leave such messages there, directly on that page.
Thanks for reading, listening to Cait, and thinking about this subject. Like I said, I think it’s something that may be deeply affecting millions upon millions of people, especially those who, like Cait, are feeling isolated for reasons other than the lockdown itself, who may have underlying issues that are exacerbated by a draconian lockdown such as Spain has implemented, and who don’t have the resources to get professional, at-a-distance aid. My wife and I obviously do lots of “facetime” with her and the boys, but when we hang up, that’s when the curtain can fall heavily. Some outside help dealing with dark hours would be great — that’s where she’s coming from in this video — and she’s not just asking for herself.