Maintaining Your Mental Health Through COVID-19 with Jenny Maenpaa, LCSW, EdM

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Maintaining Your Mental Health Through COVID-19 with Jenny Maenpaa, LCSW, EdM

On this episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, our host is Jenny Maenpaa, a FinGym client and Founder of Forward In Heels, where she is a clinical therapist and also an author based in Chelsea, New York. She is here to talk to anyone who’s feeling anxious about what COVID-19 means for their financial and personal health going forward.

NOTE: This episode was recorded on March 20, 2020 so certain things are true to that time and may developed since then.

Podcast Notes

  • Jenny is a long time Gym client, and as a self-employed small business owner. She feels the stress and strain of not knowing what COVID-19 will look like for her business in the next few months. 

  • Normally, therapists can take their time setting up an online practice over weeks or months, but most had to figure it out in about a week, due to COVID-19. The normal HIPAA compliant virtual platforms therapists used occasionally were overloaded with healthcare users, so the government eased restrictions on telehealth and allowed exceptions for certain things that were previously prohibited. 

  • Jenny is a firm believer that mental health should always be accessible to all, and that should not change in a time of crisis, when the technology to continue care for anyone who wants it is available.

  • When you get overwhelmed, remember that bad news sells, and just like how you hear about plane crashes, but never the thousands of planes that take off and land safely every day, you are only hearing bad news because that’s what gets you to tune in or click on a link.

  • The stock market is fluctuating wildly based on human behavior. We are not purely rational creatures, and if the run on toilet paper has shown anything, it’s that unfounded rumors and behaviors can make us panic if we don’t consider our sources.

  • There are proposals for aid packages but as of this recording, things are still up in the air. 

  • Approved Families First Coronavirus Response Act:

    • Testing for the coronavirus will be free to the public (without having to use deductibles or copayments). It includes a variety of waivers in order for testing costs to be covered by either insurance or government programs.

    • Federal emergency paid-leave benefits program to provide payments to some employees. It requires employers with fewer than 500 employees to provide two weeks' worth of paid sick leave if employees are unable to work because they're subject to quarantine or isolation, are experiencing symptoms of COVID–19, are caring for someone who is in quarantine or isolation, and/or have children in schools that have closed.

    • Employers themselves will receive tax credits to offset the costs of providing this paid leave. For those who are self-employed, there will be a tax credit equivalent to the sick leave amount.

    • The legislation also gives up to three months of paid family and medical leave, equivalent to no less than two-thirds of the person's pay for child care.

    • This act boosts unemployment benefits, with nearly $1 billion in state grants to cover processing and paying unemployment insurance, and it also raises the amount of assistance to states with high unemployment for those who have exhausted benefits already.

    • It also includes an emergency food assistance program

  • There is a worldwide level 4 travel ban, Canada, US, and Mexico closing to nonessential, and in some cases nonresident, citizen travel. These are precautionary measures to flatten the curve of the virus.

  • How you can stay healthy individually:

    • self-quarantine

    • social distance

    • shelter in place (only leaving your home for groceries, prescriptions, medical care for you or a pet, and exercise)

    • stock up on groceries but then STOP. You do not need 40 pounds of quinoa right now.

    • Don’t buy items with WIC stickers if you can find an alternative. For those on public assistance, they can’t just make a swap. Once WIC stamped items are gone, they are gone.

    • Continue exercising at home or outside if you can. This can mean stretching, yoga, HIIT, running in place, streaming a strength class, or just dancing it out in your living room like Meredith and Cristina would.

    • Begin your day with the same routine: wake up, drink some water, meditate, journal, light a candle, open a window, drink some coffee, and give thanks that you are able to do all of these things safely. If you don’t already, now is a good time to start some of these health habits. 

    • Begin your day with administrative tasks to get them out of the way. Make real meals and eat them at the same intervals you would previously — don’t just mindlessly snack because you’re home and bored. This isn’t an extended snow day. This may be your life for a few months, so take care of yourself. 

  • Ideas to make good use of your days: 

    • Deep clean, Marie Kondo your closets, and declutter your space. The more you experience calm around you, the more you will experience it internally.  

    • The Met opera, artists like John Legend, Pink, and Broadway musicals are streaming for free

    • Someone created a Google Chrome extension for Netflix that allows you to have a virtual watch party. Host virtual dinner parties or happy hours.

    • Many gyms, including Crunch Gym, Peloton, and CorePower Yoga are streaming free classes or extending trial periods

    • Read books you meant to get to and listen to podcasts

    • Download audio and ebooks from the library but be patient when it takes a while. 

    • Learn a language with duolingo or Rosetta Stone

    • Write the next great american novel

    • Learn a TikTok dance

    • It’s okay if you want to just watch a movie and eat for a little while

  • Every therapist is offering virtual options and they can help you through this. In terms of anxiety that comes up, focus on what you can control and let go of what you can’t. Pause news alerts.

  • If you’re a parent, just hang out. Be emotionally supportive, and when your kid does go back to school, be extra nice to their teachers. Lobby for higher wages for teachers, paraprofessionals, and all school personnel who take care of your little ones every day, every year. 

  • If you’re a manager, be extra flexible with your employees. They didn’t ask to work from home and they didn’t plan for their overloaded wifi or dog barking in the background of your call.

  • If you need tasks done, like getting your gutters cleaned, hire someone who is out of work. Buy a gift card to a small business, donate money to food banks, and donate blood if you can.

  • Reach out to your assembly people and elected representatives, because their job is to take care of the community. A lot of them are offering phone banks from home and all you need to do is be the connector between elderly constituents and resources.

  • If you are unemployed, you can request waived penalties and late fees for credit cards. Don’t touch your 401(k). The government is waiving student loan interest, and evictions are being halted in some places.

  • For more detailed information, The Financial Gym has weekly resources including webinars, newsletters, and Instagram lives. Look at the resources that exist.

  • If you’re looking for more support during this stressful time, reach out to Forward in Heels via Instagram or forwardinheels.com. They have plenty of therapists who can work with you virtually and find the right fit.

  • Jenny is the author of Forward in Heels: A step-by-step guide to having it all for badass women who want to excel at what they do, stand tall, and own their worth so they can light up the world.

The Financial Gym Team