Magic Moments: 10 Ways to Help Others in Lockdown – From Phone to Milkshake | Society

So You couldn’t read Proust. Or really anything. And you are not learning the piano. But you did a “Covid cut” – and Posted on social media. Similarly sourdough. But you feel empty, rattled, unfulfilled, helpless. Almost helpless.

Maybe because you literally don’t help. Lockdown is about you and you, trapping yourself, bending over and protecting yourself. But looking outside and helping others not only helps them, it helps you. What is known as win-win in business. Study at Stony Brook University In New York after the 2008 financial crisis, volunteering turned out to be psychologically rewarding. The majority of those people were happier and were better able to deal with disappointments and losses.

Rebecca Kennelly, Volunteer Director Royal volunteer serviceIs behind and alongside the NHS Volunteer Responder scheme. “It’s a powerful experience. The feeling of giving us a common purpose is amazing. But even the approval when making a” check-in and chat “call. [phone support to people at risk of loneliness], Or stop someone’s shopping-the knowledge that you made a real difference in a person’s life. “

Sabrina Ellis of Wolverhampton is the check-in and chat counterpart for this plan. “I feel like I’m helping people, not the frontline staff at the NHS,” she says. It’s “almost in the shadow of supporting other services.”

Here are some ways to help.

NHS Volunteer Responder

When the system was launched on March 25, the goal of 250,000 volunteers was quickly passed. Then doubled, Then triple. “I was incredibly humbled by the reaction, but I was not surprised. The country loves NHS,” Kennelly says.

At 750,000, the recruitment of new volunteers was discontinued (more than 50,000 tasks were completed as of last Friday), as more tasks were available than were needed. However, be aware that the situation will evolve. “It could open up new roles or areas of particular interest,” says Kennelly.

Please eat

NHS responder Also launched Self introduction numberAnyone can ask for help using the shield. “We must not underestimate the depth of loneliness and the loneliness people feel,” Kennelly says. “People may find it a little extravagant to ask someone to call them. There are thousands of people ready to make check-in & chat calls. Not luxury. These are precedents There is no age. ”The calling number is 0808 196 3646.

If you’re lucky – if you’re in Wolverhampton – you might be able to ride Ellis. “I have a strong passion for supporting people in need,” she says. I think she is good at it. After I talked to her, I felt better and I called just to interview her.

Help others help themselves

Tell people – your old neighbor, maybe – about self-introduction. Help them do that. Think of people who don’t know about it or are tech-savvy. “Everyone who may need support,” Ellis says. “And someday we will all be.”

Make your own check-in and chat calls …

… even if you are not part of the official army. You obviously have already done that for your parents and grandparents. I had an unplanned hearing test for my grandfather. “Don’t plug your face, ground, or phone into your ears.” Also, maybe clean them …

“Be good neighbors, be good friends, be good relatives,” says Kennelly. “These phones are the magical moments of someone’s day.”

And think beyond your immediate family and friends to those who may not have daily check-ins. Maybe Aunt Doris, maybe.

Join a local Covid-19 Mutual Relief Group

Just before Britain was shut down, a group of friends in Louisham in southern London began to talk about what social isolation really meant for vulnerable members of the community. They apply the principle of ” mutual aid Says Kevin Smith, who has been involved since the beginning. “The horizontal principle of solidarity, not the charitable model of one group’s society helping another.”

The group passed the leaflets through the door, asked who needed help and who could, and launched a Facebook page. After that, people all over the country became interested and participated. Website opened.

Currently, there are more than 3,500 groups in the country. Smith says the number of people involved is millions. People who help with shopping, receive prescriptions, walk dogs, and advise on the rights of the lessor. He tells me how his group was contacted by the charity Age UK about strawberry milkshakes. I wanted a dying woman. Of course, they delivered her very luxurious things. Well

“This foreground narrative is all about self-interest in times of crisis,” Smith says. “On the contrary, during the crisis these feelings towards group treatment are also stimulated by each other and our well-being is fundamentally related to the community.

Volunteer at the food bank

Trassel Trust It supports a nationwide network of over 1,200 food banks. There is also Independent load. Gary Lemmon, Director of Policy Studies at Toraser Trust, says coronaviruses pose new challenges “from health and economic crises and the resulting demand for food banks.”

Many older volunteers had to stay home. “We had a couple of hard weeks, many volunteers dropped out of the system,” he says.

He was impressed by the huge reaction, but he still has the opportunity. You can sign up on the website. Yes, like key workers, there are risks, but “We do everything we can to keep them to a minimum. If you are not high risk and you want to help, Trussell Trust Volunteer Page Great place to start.

Unfortunately, the food bank is not currently a place for non-critical chatting and drinking tea, so unfortunately they had to adapt, such as by courier. “But the first thing is the health and safety of volunteers and those who need their services,” says Lemon.

Donate food

One of the petitions from Lemon: “Obviously, the fresh food we have is very grateful. But if you want to helpFind out what kind of food your local food bank needs, find out what’s missing, and fill those holes. “

They try to make packages that are as nutritionally balanced as possible. Lemon refers to carton of juice, cans of meat and fish, and always-UHT milk. But it depends on the location, so check first. They also take toiletries and hygiene products such as toothpaste and sanitary napkins. Many supermarkets have collection points where you can store things. Online supermarkets have a way to donate at checkout.

Can you sew?

Annabel Maguire can. She’s a set designer, but she doesn’t need much at this time. A few weeks ago, she wasn’t busy when a doctor at the local mutual aid WhatsApp group couldn’t get a scrub anywhere and asked if someone could make something.

Maguire and three other people in the group (the pattern cutter in the fashion industry, a charity worker, and another in the textile shop) soon found it. “I think I found it useless, but what can I do now for my time? Can you help me?” She says. “And I had some skills that really worked, and we quickly realized that there was a perfect skill to help us.”

They understood the production line how it was done, but they were contactless in different spaces. Such Scrub hub was born.

Currently, there are 128 hubs in the UK and 1,766 volunteers who have contributed about 3,500 scrubs. The website has directories for all hubs. The new one is still set up. participate. You need to know what you are doing, experience sewing, and know what you are doing.Overlock“is. Maguire and her team were not happy when the sun described them as a bunch of amateurs. They are proud of their scrubs.

Can you sew

What can you do? Maguire and Ellis have found meaning, purpose and structure by leveraging their skills. “It sounds trivial, but I asked how I could help people,” Ellis says. “I look for where the gaps people are trying to fill are.”

What kind of gap can you fill? What are your skills There are organizations like Volunteer problem And Do it You can connect with charities. Participate in volunteers Match people with specialized expertise. At my home Next door Page, Brent (with high mortality) wants an overwhelmed carpenter to help make a coffin. It may be too strict.

Or just give them you money

Maybe you don’t have useful skills. Or are you still doing the real work, you don’t have the time, but maybe there are some preliminary changes? Remember charity. They are suffering terribly, Due to event cancellations and store closures. They may not want your “vintage” clothes or your CD now, but they are desperately in need of money.

Obviously, there are too many charities to list. You may know where to donate, but don’t forget the new homeless, the lost, the hospitality industry, and the arts. One way to make sure it goes to the forefront is to donate to National Emergencies Trust, Adjusting the attractiveness of the British coronavirus.

But do something. Forget Proust You never read him. Sourdough is a disaster. Nobody likes it. Get up and look outside to help others. Please eat help.