Bloody September: How to Navigate the Escalating War in Lebanon
Grace Massoud
30 أيلول 2024 16:00
Grace Massoud wrote this article in MTV website:
For two weeks now, Lebanon has been suffering a war that has spread throughout its territory. A war most of us did not sign up for, a fight that is not ours to fight. Thousands of innocent people are dying,1 million of innocent people are being displaced from their homes, and having to sleep in the streets. The shocking bombings, their random targets, and the uncertainty of our fate have sent us all in a whirlwind of stress, sadness and paralysis. What will become of us? How long will the bombings last? Is any of us really safe?
The Lebanese people are resilient, patient and accustomed to wars. However, how much can one people endure before they break? The only way I can think of to stay healthy and sane, to stand a chance at coming out the other end with the least possible damage to our psyche, is to take rational steps towards tending to our mental health.
Limit your intake of the News. Watch the strict necessary, better yet read the News on digital platforms. This will help deflate the tension in our minds and bodies.
The state of fight or flight that the daily bombings have put us in is stressful and damaging. It can be alleviated by doing mindful exercises such as praying, meditating or journaling, which reconnect you to the present moment.
Exercise, go for a walk, which is the cure for 90% of all human ailments. Whatever it is that’s bumming you out, a walk outside will take the edge off and unravel your overactive mind and tense body.
Help if you can. Give food, clothing, mattresses, blankets, even a place to stay for the Lebanese who were forced to abandon their homes and become stranded in the streets. Share what’s happening on social media, how we’re being brutally attacked everywhere, not just in Hezbollah strongholds, so that western media’s attempts at banalizing the brutality of the bombings are curbed.
Keep on accomplishing small things, small wins in your daily tasks to get your power back and feel like you got this. Attain the elusive warrior spirit.
Get together with your close friends and family to build that sense of unison, of “we’re all in this together”, have a few laughs and keep the distressing feelings of isolation at bay.
During times of war, it is vital to pour all our attention into the small things which are within our control as opposed to the big things which aren’t. There is opportunity even in our darkest hour. A pragmatic brain in the midst of chaos will save us. In this manner, we fight off overwhelming feelings of helplessness, uncertainty and anxiety, we build a sense of control over our fate, and we keep our wits about us. Above all else, have faith, unshakeable faith that better days are on the horizon.
For two weeks now, Lebanon has been suffering a war that has spread throughout its territory. A war most of us did not sign up for, a fight that is not ours to fight. Thousands of innocent people are dying,1 million of innocent people are being displaced from their homes, and having to sleep in the streets. The shocking bombings, their random targets, and the uncertainty of our fate have sent us all in a whirlwind of stress, sadness and paralysis. What will become of us? How long will the bombings last? Is any of us really safe?
The Lebanese people are resilient, patient and accustomed to wars. However, how much can one people endure before they break? The only way I can think of to stay healthy and sane, to stand a chance at coming out the other end with the least possible damage to our psyche, is to take rational steps towards tending to our mental health.
Limit your intake of the News. Watch the strict necessary, better yet read the News on digital platforms. This will help deflate the tension in our minds and bodies.
The state of fight or flight that the daily bombings have put us in is stressful and damaging. It can be alleviated by doing mindful exercises such as praying, meditating or journaling, which reconnect you to the present moment.
Exercise, go for a walk, which is the cure for 90% of all human ailments. Whatever it is that’s bumming you out, a walk outside will take the edge off and unravel your overactive mind and tense body.
Help if you can. Give food, clothing, mattresses, blankets, even a place to stay for the Lebanese who were forced to abandon their homes and become stranded in the streets. Share what’s happening on social media, how we’re being brutally attacked everywhere, not just in Hezbollah strongholds, so that western media’s attempts at banalizing the brutality of the bombings are curbed.
Keep on accomplishing small things, small wins in your daily tasks to get your power back and feel like you got this. Attain the elusive warrior spirit.
Get together with your close friends and family to build that sense of unison, of “we’re all in this together”, have a few laughs and keep the distressing feelings of isolation at bay.
During times of war, it is vital to pour all our attention into the small things which are within our control as opposed to the big things which aren’t. There is opportunity even in our darkest hour. A pragmatic brain in the midst of chaos will save us. In this manner, we fight off overwhelming feelings of helplessness, uncertainty and anxiety, we build a sense of control over our fate, and we keep our wits about us. Above all else, have faith, unshakeable faith that better days are on the horizon.