{"id":3691,"date":"2020-04-12T18:43:03","date_gmt":"2020-04-12T18:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amybanksmd.com\/?p=3691"},"modified":"2021-03-09T20:51:36","modified_gmt":"2021-03-09T20:51:36","slug":"social-vs-physical-distancing-why-it-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amybanksmd.com\/2020\/04\/12\/social-vs-physical-distancing-why-it-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"Social vs. Physical Distancing\u2014Why It Matters"},"content":{"rendered":"

The importance of social connection in the pandemic.\u00a0<\/em>To protect ourselves, our families, and our communities from the devastation of the coronavirus, health experts strongly encourage everyone to \u201csocially distance\u201d \u2014 to stay 6-10 feet away from other people.<\/p>\n

I am concerned \u2014\u00a0not by the strategy but by the way people are enacting it. The few times I have ventured out to a grocery store or for a walk around my neighborhood, I’ve seen people not only keeping distant from one another but also seeming afraid. They pass each other on the street or in a store without looking at each other or\u00a0exchanging greetings.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s as if we were each locked in a personal bubble that no one can enter. The threat of COVID-19 and the stress it induces can understandably cause individuals to become terrified and myopic \u2014 to turn inward in an attempt to stay safe.<\/p>\n

While a week of that may be more\u00a0stressful\u00a0to some than others, months of this type of\u00a0social isolation\u00a0is dangerous. Research clearly shows us that our physical and emotional health and well-being are\u00a0dependent on loving relationships and physical touch. To weather this pandemic, we need one another.<\/p>\n

Weeks ago, my colleague and friend, Roseann Adams, LCSW, recognized that the national strategy of social distancing was a double-edged sword. She identified that social distancing can be a threat to all of us as it leads some people to socially isolate potentially causing further stress and, over the long haul, impairing our bodies\u2019 immune system. In fact, strict social distancing may set us up for other illnesses.<\/p>\n

Within the first few days, she was encouraging people to\u00a0physically distance\u00a0with\u00a0social connection. Differentiating physical distance from social distance acknowledges the virus\u2019s malignant ability to be transmitted from person to person but also acknowledges that the virus has\u00a0no\u00a0power over our ability to support and nurture one another in this time of extraordinary threat.<\/p>\n

Think about the power of social isolation in society. Solitary confinement is considered the worst punishment a human can receive. In fact, most civilized communities consider it a form of torture. The physical and emotional toll it takes over time includes a worsening of mental health issues, an increase in self-injurious behavior and even suicide.<\/p>\n

Isolating individuals is perhaps the most common first step domestic abusers use to gain power and control over their victims. He or she begins to control who you can see, where you can go, what you can wear.\u00a0When a person violates the rules set by the perpetrator the punishment is harsh and swift.<\/p>\n

Social distancing, as it has been presented, can feel like that.\u00a0\u00a0In fact, in my work with\u00a0trauma\u00a0survivors during this time, I have heard people describe feeling trapped and threatened again. That is not sustainable. Becoming socially isolated may keep the majority of us alive, but not well.<\/p>\n

By naming the national strategy as physical distancing rather than social distancing and emphasizing the need for human connection, we can stay safe from the virus but also hold onto the heightened need we all have for one another right now. Each of us needs an extra dose of being seen and held within our connections during this extraordinary time. Perhaps now, more than ever, we must be intentional about giving our neural pathways for connection a workout.<\/p>\n

In fact, we need to go out of our way to make eye contact, wave, move, or loudly say\u00a0“hello” from behind the mask. This gives our smart\u00a0vagus nerve\u00a0and our mirror neurons a workout. Literally, the sound of a friendly voice and seeing the eyebrows of another person raise in greeting stimulates your social engagement system, which in turn sends a signal to your stress response system to stand down. Those moments of interaction may make the difference in the long run as to how we, as a society, survive the pandemic.<\/p>\n

The human\u00a0nervous system\u00a0is amazingly adaptive. Our brains will adapt to social isolation over time, but the burden of stress the isolation causes will lead to long-term health problems. As a society we will not be well at the end of all of this \u2014\u00a0not because of COVID-19 but because of the message we take in that being with others can be dangerous.<\/p>\n

That is why each of us must do our part to not only stay physically six feet apart and to wear masks but also to go out of our way on the street, in the grocery store, through FaceTime, Zoom, or whatever platform you can use to reach out to one another. We all must\u00a0know\u00a0that nurturing the relationships we have and reaching out to others who may be isolated is as essential to surviving the pandemic as physical distancing.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s add another important directive to our national policy of containing the coronavirus \u2014\u00a0to reach out each day to three other people \u2014\u00a0to check in on them, simply hear their voice, or share the pain or joy of the day. This is a wider strategy to not only survive the pandemic but to keep our humanity alive.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The importance of social connection in the pandemic.\u00a0To protect ourselves, our families, and our communities from the devastation of the coronavirus, health experts strongly encourage everyone to \u201csocially distance\u201d \u2014 to stay 6-10 feet away from other people. I am concerned \u2014\u00a0not by the strategy but by the way people are enacting it. The few […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3635,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[38,33,21,32,31,36,34,35],"yoast_head":"\nSocial vs. Physical Distancing\u2014Why It Matters - Amy Banks MD<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Months of\u00a0social isolation\u00a0is dangerous. 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