We’re into May can you believe it? We’re hanging in there with managing our “new normal” for now with the coronavirus situation.  And I’m sending you all good wishes.

The dominant conversations daily have been about coronavirus of course.  I’ve been thinking how this cornoavirus situation has affected all of us.  I know a lot of people want to do something to reach out to connect with others or to help others.  It’s so inspiring to see all the acts of kindness and support people have given to their family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and community.  It touches our hearts to see those acts of kindness extended to strangers.

Compassion is an emotion we feel when we want to give care to someone else. Many of us are in positions where we have to help others…..whether you work in the medical profession, first responders, or are physically caring for someone in your family.  With so many people in need and suffering, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.  That’s where the science shows compassion can really help out. It protects us from feeling really burned out during stressful or crisis situations. Compassion can help us get thru hard times without feeling burned out.

Compassion also makes it a lot easier to do the difficult things we have to do right now like self-sacrificing and staying home in order to slow the spread and help flatten the curve of coronavirus. Simple acts of helping a person order food online or calling and checking up on an elderly neighbor living alone can reduce the challenges of staying at home and makes us be more willing to do those self-sacrifices.

Did you know the science shows when we give support to others, we also are improving our own personal well-being? Compassion gives us the strength we need to focus on others during difficult times. And that can pay huge dividends not only to those we are helping, but also to us. Giving to others can be incredibly rewarding.  It makes the giver happy and makes the receiver happy. It’s a win-win situation.  You can even go further with this and say it’s a win-win-win situation.  Here’s how….

Remember when you were a kid trying to skip a rock across the water.  There’s a ripple effect that happens as the rock hits across the water.  We see the water rippling out until you can’t see it anymore.  That’s how the power of compassion works.  People who are helped, feel grateful for that help.  They then want to pay it forward and help someone else which spreads that network. This network of helping continues to spread and grow.

Ways you can help others are many and here’s some simple acts of compassion to spread:

• send a card in the mail or send an e-card online to let a friend know you’re thinking of them
• walk your neighbor’s dog
• do some yard work for your friend
• make face masks for others
• make a self-care basket for others
• FaceTime with family or friends
• post a thank you card for the mailman on the mailbox
• donate stuff (like extra bandanas you have for face masks, paper towels, books to non-profit organizations)
• grocery shop for neighbors or friends who can’t
• support small businesses and artists thru Etsy.com

So those are just a few ideas.  I’d love to hear some of the ways you are spreading compassion.