Psychological First Aid

We've all had different ways of coping since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Personally, I have found comfort in accomplishing meaningful tasks, even though I'm largely stuck at home. Volunteering, writing emails to my lawmakers, doing creative projects, and continuing to learn even though my grad school classes are on break for the summer have all given me a sense of focus and purpose.

Today, I finished my first Coursera class, one from Johns Hopkins that covers the RAPID (reflective listening, assessment of needs, prioritization, intervention, and disposition) model of psychological first aid. I had been meaning to get some training in psychological/mental health first aid for a long time so that I could better respond to crises when working as an educator and director, but this skillset feels even more important now that we in the US are experiencing a pandemic and an uprising against racial injustice simultaneously. All of us, regardless of profession, could benefit from developing skills that help us care for one another during these incredibly stressful times.