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We at EAP know that many circumstances in our lives, including world events, may trigger the need for mental health support. Please know that the EAP’s counselors can support you during this time. To make a free and confidential appointment with a licensed counselor, please call 512-471-3366 or email eap@austin.utexas.edu

On March 13, 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic arrived at UT Austin. Three years later, we at the EAP are sharing this brief video with space to mark the losses our community has experienced.

These last few weeks in the United States have rocked many of our worlds as gun violence has killed innocent people in subway cars, a grocery store, a church and most recently in an elementary school close to us here in Texas. It is devastating that the gun violence has disproportionately targeted Black and Brown communities, and was perpetrated in the common, everyday places where we all go, where we travel, where we gather and nourish ourselves, and where we send our children to learn and grow.

Over the course of the pandemic, grief has impacted so many.

The University of Texas at Austin community is reeling from the news of the murder of Dr. Katherine Lindley Dodson earlier this week.

Children work through grief and loss in their own way, often times through play. This article talks about using the P.A.C.E. approach — playfulness, acceptance, curiosity, and empathy— to help adults connect and interact with young children. It also includes ways to foster imaginative exploration and things to watch out for with play.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-children-process-grief-and-loss-through-play

You may be experiencing a multitude of emotions with all going on with COVID-19.That can feel uncomfortable, overwhelming and confusing.There is a lot of loss we are and will continue to experience due to this crisis and as a result, we are grieving in many ways. This article from the Harvard Business Review offers a lens to name and explore the discomfort and distress that may be arising.

https://hbr.org/2020/03/that-discomfort-youre-feeling-is-grief