Staying Sane
A Grateful Heart, Day 22
My husband and I spent the long, lonely cold winter of 2019, and the spring and summer of 2020 battling with my mother-in-law’s rapidly worsening dementia. We veered between pinnacles of hope and the depths of despair. Every day was a dizzying seesaw of elation and dejection. The man-made, forcible isolation of the lockdown didn’t help in any way. Rumours about the ‘pandemic’ scared people out of their wits and did more to distance people than actual physical distancing.
With no relief from those we had always thought we could depend on, no end in sight to the difficult time we were going through, we turned, like everyone did, to the Internet. Along with the precarious state of our own mental health, we were also experiencing a whole slew of mysterious physical ailments. In retrospect, there must have been ways in which we could have protected our health, both mental and physical, but at that point in time, the thought hadn’t occurred to us. The only salvation was the few Youtube channels that offered temporary relief and a chance to forget.
I would recommend these to anyone who is going through what we were going through.
Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury’s videos helped my husband drop his weight from 85 kilos to a steady 65, and eliminate the need for all his medicines. They helped me get rid of my excess fat, too.
Austin Goh’s videos helped me treat a persistent ear pain that I had associated with vertigo, and usually got treated with a painful ‘ear cleaning’. My ear used to feel as if it was developing an air bubble inside it. He also helped with the wrist pain that I had developed because I was accustomed to always holding my phone in my left hand.
Dr. Hegde’s videos: he is vocal, hilarious, wise and knowledgeable, and speaks of how to cure oneself, and the dangers of arrogance. He says that if we are kind and compassionate, nature works to assist us, but arrogance and hard-heartedness result in your entire body rebelling against you and creating problems for you.
The series is called ‘Green Renaissance.’
‘Des Racines et Des Ailes (subtitled) of TV5 Monde Asie, for their wonderful documentaries and superb scenery.
PRSW100, for the calm voice of the narrator and the glorious scenery
Pachelbel and Tim Janis’s music, Aparmita’s Himalayan Flute Music, the pure hilarity of I Love Lucy, without double meanings and mockery and Classical dance in any form and of any country.
And always, and forever, Pink Floyd.
We also tried to avoid toxic people, toxic forwards, and toxic, divisive ‘news’. It helped that we have stopped subscribing to Cable networks three years ago, and so the channels we watch are those which are free on Youtube. So our news of the virus and the games politicians and governments around the world play with it depended on how unhappy and agitated we wished to make ourselves, by viewing or listening to them.
And for those of you who have trouble sleeping, which we had, for all those months, I would recommend listening to the continuous patter of rain on a tin roof. It helped me.
For all those who are suffering from anxiety, a sense of insecurity, guilt, and the conviction that joy will never come back into their lives again: I hope this helps. Trust me when I say that joy WILL return to all lives.
Reaching out to all of you with love and hope and good cheer.
Stay blessed.
This, too, shall pass.
I am eternally grateful to all the people and agencies who/which created these series of videos that kept us sane and grounded.
This is a response to the monthly prompt for November, ‘A Grateful Heart’, of Ravyne Hawke’s beautiful publication, ‘Promptly Written.’ Today is Day 22.
