Optum
Optum, part of UnitedHealth Group, is opening its Emotional-Support Help Line. Professionally trained, mental health staff are there to support people who may be suffering from fear or stress created by COVID-19. Optum’s Emotional-Support Help Line number is 866-342-6892 and will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The service is free of charge and open to all PEIA members.
Centers for Disease Control
Mind Control: Managing Your Mental Health During COVID-19
Never in the history of humanity have so many people been feeling intense anxiety related to COVID-19 and the world it will leave in its wake. The intent of this course is to give you a deeper understanding of the anxiety reaction as it relates to various aspects of our current life, ranging from our consumption of news to the way we talk to our children about this. I will also give you clear strategies for managing and, in fact, turning off the anxiety response at least for short periods. My sincere hope is that you will leave this course with a better understanding of how your brain reacts to crises, along with some powerful tools for managing it before it manages you. REGISTER HERE
Mindfulness for Wellness: Eight-Session Series
This Mindfulness for Wellness series was developed by Dr. Louisa Sylvia and the team at the Dauten Center for Bipolar Treatment Innovation within the Massachusetts General Hospital’s Department of Psychiatry. This program teaches basic mindfulness skills that can help you cope with the stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Each session focuses on a particular skill and will take between 15 and 20 minutes to complete. You can do these sessions over a period of days or weeks. Most of the mindfulness exercises you will learn are quite short, and you will get more out of the program if you can find the time to practice them between sessions. REGISTER HERE
Prama’s Wellness Wednesday Online Meditations
Free meditation session. We will be providing a mantra (meditation technique) which will help you concentrate better. The session will last about 30-40 minutes, including a guided meditationand a short talk on aspects of meditation practice.
The online meditation is conducted with Zoom. You can either join us by phone or with the Zoom app which will give you full video access to the event. You will receive the zoom link before the program. REGISTER HERE – its free
Take a Deep Breath
Science has shown that slowing our breathing helps us calm down. Research also shows that taking a few minutes to do breathing exercises can help relax our brains and make it easier for us to cope with stress and make thoughtful decisions.
Take a Minute to Meditate
Today, there are many definitions of meditation and even more approaches to doing it. When we talk about meditating as a way to “Press Pause” during stressful or anxious moments, we’re talking about taking a mindful moment to calm down, turn off some of that noise in our minds, and refocus so we can get the important stuff done.
Weekday Sunrise Meditations – Online
These one-hour online meditations will be a support for all those who like to be in nature and feel the support of the natural world for our practice and to help calm and relax our body, mind and heart.
Running on weekdays at 7 am Pacific Time / 10 am Eastern Time. No meditations are scheduled for Saturdays and Sundays.
This class is offered freely. REGISTER HERE