The stimulus package may help wallets eventually, but what about stress levels now?
Submitted by Dr. Gwenn Is In
In the health care world, we tend to have a few different conditions we treat:
1. Emergencies that require treatments where we see near immediate results to ward off further problems or to save a life. Heart attacks, head injuries, complicated fractures, deep lacerations are some common examples.
2. Urgent situations that require care and treatment where we often don’t expect to see results immediately but do expect to see improvement in the near future. Most of the infections and injuries we seek care for fall into this category. Conditions like strep throat and sprained ankles all require treatment up front but we may not see the results of that treatment for a few days to a couple weeks.
3. Chronic conditions that require constant follow-up and treatment fine-tuning where we may not see results for a few weeks to months, depending on the nature of the condition.
If only our economic stimulus package had more features of treatment options familiar to us from our health care experience, more of us could relax a bit. Our economic crisis is a sign of a sick economy. Yet, by all reports, while our system is in an emergency state with home foreclosures and job layoffs at all time highs, there is little in that stimulus package that will help us see improvement soon. That’s a tough pill for many Americans to swallow.
And, it is all Americans, all walks of life feeling this pinch now and becoming increasingly more stressed. A lawyer in Massachusetts told me recently that he knows of major law firms laying people off. He mentioned that those layoffs are not as well publicized as as some of the other industries but it’s happening in their industry, too. There just isn’t enough work for the amount of lawyers. That sentiment was echoed in a poll published on the Boston Channel this week by the AP-GfK that indicated 50% of people surveyed are worried about losing their jobs.
In addition to the poll citing wide-spread concern for lost jobs and retirement funds, the poll also showed a decrease in support for the stimulus plan. Why? People want to see an immediate relief in new jobs…not a delay. In short, the medicine given to the economy by the stimulus package isn’t potent enough to allay any one’s anxiety of concerns.
As a pediatrician, I can attest that kids feel the strain that their parents feel. Kids may not express it for fear of worrying their parents but they, too, are worried. They worry for their families. They worry for their friends. They also worry for their futures.
The best way to help kids, is to get them to talk. Here are some resources to help:
American Academy of Pediatrics Talking to kids about the economy
What do your kids understand about the economy? (tips from Boston Globe’s Barbara Meltz)
Clearly it is going to take some time for the financial inoculation the economy just received to do any bit of good for anyone. Just as you would with any disaster, limit your exposure to the news and focus on routine. Find ways to relax and regroup as a family and as individuals. It doesn’t cost a cent to sit around the table to play a board game, go for a walk as a family, or cook dinner together. Sometimes taking your mind of your troubles, and the troubles of our times, is the best medicine of them all - and may be just what everyone collectively needs right now.
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