We are living in unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has taken hundreds of thousands of lives, devastated the economy, and fundamentally changed how we live. As the pandemic continues on for the foreseeable future, another major impact is being made on our mental health and interpersonal relationships. In the world of mental health treatment, couples therapy is particularly linked to these impacts, as its focus is on the very relationships that have been so disrupted. Dr. Delverlon Hall, the Director of the Training Institute for Mental Health’s Couples’ Program, gave me her thoughts on how the pandemic has altered couples’ therapy, our relationships, and our mental health, and how we can turn this tumultuous moment into positive change.
As I thought about my journey as a psychoanalyst, musical performer and writer, so many things came to mind that it felt quite overwhelming to condense this into such a small space. After all so much that is central to my life is entwined despite containing very differently defined aspects of myself and the roles that I play. For some, many of these things may come more easily but for me it has been a lifelong struggle to allow myself to travel this journey because of my upbringing and experience.
Why do seniors commit suicide? That was the topic of a recent workshop I attended. They don’t attempt it more often, but their “completion rate” is much higher. “Completion” being the brave new world term for ‘success’ in suicide. Adolescents attempt 50 times/death, seniors 7 times/death. The senior statistics break down to 3/1 for men who tend to use guns or hanging and about 10/1 for women who tend to use pills.
Which brings me to the subject of retirement.