COVID-19 is gripping us all with a new and unprecedented wave of stress, anxiety and fear. Many of our lives have been turned topsy-turvy : we have to work from and stay home, schools and businesses are closed and our city is in lock-down. Our freedom is curbed. We miss our family and friends. We cannot do many of the things we used to do. These lifestyle changes can trigger feelings of anger, resentment, and to some loneliness from isolation. With the severe economic downturn, we face real fears of job loss and salary cuts : threatening our very survival and security. Everyday, we are flooded with horrific COVID-19 news of more deaths, more getting sick, and more cities locking down. Is it any wonder then that we are all very anxious and frightened?

How can we cope with all this? Negative emotions are instinctive and they help us pre-empt needs and threats and guide us to plan and prepare what is necessary. However, too much anxiety

and fear threaten our emotional wellness, and if this is not managed, they can also affect our physical health, and compromise the quality of our lives and our relationships. It is timely to remember that our Total Wellness is 3 dimensional : of the body, mind and spirit. As we know well how to take care of our physical health, let us learn also to take care of our emotional health. This talk will help you do that : gaining greater clarity of emotional wellness and learning some techniques to help you relieve some of the stress, and restore some calm and balance during these uncertain times.

Topics Covered:

• COVID-19 Stress Landscape
• Work and Lifestyle changes and the impact on stress
• The Threats of Excessive Stress on Mind and Body
• Triggers to Negative Emotions
• Techniques to relieve stress and restore calm and balance, and a positive mindset.

Facilitated by Eunice Gan

Eunice Gan from Singapore is an Emotional Wellness Coach. She was a trainer for some 20 years in sales and marketing. She has extensive inter-cultural experience, having lived and worked overseas for many years. She embarked on a career switch to study psychology and counselling. She holds a Specialist Diploma in Counselling and Psychology (Singapore) and is Certified Choice Theory/Reality Therapy* with The William Glasser Institute USA.

*CTRT is a form of behavioural psychotherapy. Its basic teaching is that while we cannot control circumstances, we can control how we think and behave. The goal is to guide people towards taking better control and balance to improve the quality of the lives by learning to make better choices. Eunice has developed several workshops on emotional wellness, emotional resilience, inter-personal relationships for both companies and the public. Semi retired, and living in Singapore, she continues her work in wellness workshops, and counselling.