In my role of helping staff within the University of Iowa Emergency Department’s psychiatry team and providing 45 well-being first aid workshops to more than 2,000 clinicians across Iowa, I have a unique perspective into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on society.

From this vantage point, I have seen distressed patients and an exhausted workforce still struggling more than two years after the start of the pandemic.

With this unique perspective, I hope to inspire you with 14 tips for a well-being refresh:

• Create a well-being plan that evolves. This pandemic is ever-changing. What worked in March 2020 may not work today. As the pandemic changes, how you deal with new stresses may need to change. During the early parts of the pandemic lockdown, I spent a good deal of time catching up on movies. But now, activities that are socially isolating are not best for my own health.
• Recognize the stakes are still high. Five hundred Americans still die of COVID-19 each day, with another 165,000 COVID-related deaths expected yet this year. We need to continue to be vigilant, protect the vulnerable, and care for each other as the pandemic is not over.
• Put on your oxygen mask before you assist others. Every time I hear that phrase before I fly, it reminds me that if I am in bad shape, I will not be effective in helping others. Good self-care, such as a commitment to regular exercise, a healthy diet, and attention to adequate sleep leads to a stronger ability to care for others.
• Restoration matters more than resilience. A lot of pre-pandemic training focused on resilience to prevent burnout. Resilience is the process of successfully adapting to difficult life experiences. As the pandemic continues, I am amazed by teachers, law enforcement officers, clinicians, and other essential workers as they continue to answer the call. Each has resilience, but many are worn down. For many, it is no longer help with resilience that is needed, but guidance toward restoration, which is a returning to a healthy condition.
• Create a personal and intentional well-being portfolio. Each of us gets relief from stress in different ways. For some it is exercise and for others it is meditation. I encourage you to find what works for you and to work your well-being plan daily with an ultimate goal of restoration – returning to a healthy condition.
• Not everyone is back yet, so help them find the way. For some, life is getting back to normal. Yet, others just can’t get there. They are mourning or are deeply scarred from the pandemic. They need us to search for them and show them how to get back to a life of fulfilling work and enjoyable interactions with peers and family.
• Peer-to-peer interventions work. One of the proven ways to help each other get back to a more pre-pandemic life is through peer-to-peer groups. Nurses listen to nurses and police officers listen to police officers. During the peak of the pandemic in New York City, nurse peer-to-peer support groups were found to be the strongest protective factors in getting through the stress.
• Unchecked trauma is toxic, so check it. The research is clear: unrelenting and severe stress harms brain function. As I scurry across our hospital, I see selfless clinical staff with symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The good news is that, with professional help, these symptoms can ease significantly.
• Validation eases the pain. As we conduct well-being workshops, surveys tell us that there is great appreciation for validation, specifically that most people are still struggling and that they are not alone. I highlight “If you are not feeling like yourself right now, you are in the majority.”
• Less is more. National affairs are particularly rough right now. Social media can be brutal. Too much bad news and conflict each day can increase depression and anxiety. My wife and I limit our watching of the national news to 30 minutes each night and stay entirely off social media. Less time dedicated to these things has freed up more time to be with family, go outdoors, and cheer on the Hawkeyes. A helpful exercise might be to see how moderation of time interacting with news and social media reduces your level of anxiety and distress.
• Little comforts add up. Learning from our Emergency Department medical residents, I invested in noise-canceling headphones and was amazed how much more I could get done with less distraction. Similarly, a small fan in my office has transformed my workspace. These little comforts make a difference.
• Service to others can be healing. I spent 19 years in Oklahoma, well-known for F5 tornadoes. After these disasters, the Oklahoma culture is for everyone to immediately pitch in and help others rebuild with the guidance of community-based agencies. I have witnessed that service to others is a way for Oklahomans to heal their neighbors and themselves after disasters. Many are in need all around us. Most community agencies enthusiastically engage volunteers to extend their reach.
• Seek post-traumatic growth. Can we be wiser after experiencing danger and tragedy? Early in my career, our family was stalked for an entire year. I would never wish this on anyone, but my wife and I learned a great deal. Our perspectives on what is serious and what is trivial were forever changed.

As we close, you may ask a more basic question: Is there a path to calm interactions with each other?

In our daily interactions, I think it would be helpful if a little more grace was offered and accepted. One of the root meanings of the word "grace” is a disposition to mercy, compassion, kindness, and clemency. I add the concept of two-way grace, with a level of mutual respect and understanding that each person knows the other has been through a difficult time and that mercy, compassion, and kindness extended to each other helps both.

Cover photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash