Dr. Sandra Pacheco, a Practitioner of Curanderismo, reflects with us about the struggles of 2020 and the incredible resiliency of our communities, many who have not stopped working during this pandemic. The pandemic has created a spiritual darkness of sickness, grief, and depression; Dr. Pacheco urges us not to hide our emotions and feelings but rather to try to find the light within us through self care and keeping up with spiritual practices and beliefs that we may have. In essence, she encourages us to create a "spiritual vaccine" while we wait for other vaccines to be made available. Maintaining our practices of wearing masks and social distancing will continue to help us in the coming year.
Managing our disconnects created by the pandemic; not visiting our families and hugging our loved ones has been very trying for our families. These recommended behaviors are the opposite of what we do in times of emergencies and that creates confusion, anger and maybe disregard for public health measures.
Dr. Pacheco encourages us to release our grief and sadness, and to connect to our belief systems to help us get through this transition as new medications and vaccines become available to provide more protections from Covid-19. Maintaining our practices of wearing masks and social distancing will continue to help us in the coming year.