We Sad Frogs
By Pamela Garber, LMHC
Grand Central Counseling Group
New York
These are scary times. People on all sides of the mic are on the front lines. Not just “them,” otherwise referred to as the audience. We try to fool ourselves into thinking that society and civilization are relatively “safe.” However, simply being alive and stepping outside in the morning, turning on the computer, or checking the annoyingly smart phone, puts us smack dab in the middle of a war. Literally and figuratively. But like so much else in this modern era, this war lacks foundation.
We have no base upon which to support conflict and, at every turn, from the most mundane moment of waiting in line at the store to fulfilling a day’s work; from meeting a friend for lunch to using a credit card or answering a phone – danger is just a breath away. Rest assured, YOU are not the only one who feels this way. As much as we try to maintain a professional “distance” from those we serve and with whom we engage from our “platforms” on high – they are us and we are them. I am my patients. You are your listeners. We are all brewing in the same stew. Are you worried about losing your job (or business) as a result of the cutbacks in the media? If you’re not, perhaps you should dig deeper. Or at least get in touch with your empathy – for self and others.
We frogs, who still remember living life in cooler water, are increasingly sad. Underneath one-issue pigeonholing, ideological frustration, or brief political triumph on a so-called good news day, the temperature is still rising. It feels like the world was robbed from us, and, on the inside, we are afraid. We have no baseline within the fundamentals of basic life – medical, legal, family, economy, clergy, education, fidelity, intimacy, and even the justice department.
Humans on both sides of the speaker miss the days when pain could exist in a single file. Today even the specific pain of loss gets steady competition within a backdrop of boiling chaos. Our relatability to each other is increasingly unseen. Our pain breeds ugliness. Ugliness of the verbal and behavioral variety breeds isolation, rage, destruction and an urgent need for help. Expert help. At a time when everyone is an expert, there seems to be no one to call… except maybe a therapist. Or maybe a talk show host.
Pamela Garber, LMHC is a practicing therapist based in NYC and South Florida and a longtime guest mental health commentator on radio and television news programs across the nation. She can be contacted by phone at 646-745-6709 or email at Pamelagarber@gmail.com. Her website is Grandcentralcounselinggroup.com.
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