Are you still not feeling well even after Biden's inauguration?

Well, here's a short thread to hopefully support you in your journey ahead.

Before anything, let's first agree that what you went through was a once in a lifetime thing truly in every way possible. And BADDDDD.

We almost got overrun by fascists during a year in which we've been all but locked out in our homes and still, 400,000 humans are dead. This rarely happens and when it does, it isn't just a big deal. It is a catastrophe. Your body knows this and has adjusted for your survival.

If it's your first go-round with this (you don't belong to a community who has faced direct violence non-stop for centuries), then you might be confused right now as to why your body is still in survival mode. Why won't it stop. Why am I still under siege?

That's because there are some things that are so vital to human survival that it's best you don't have control over them. This is one of those instances. Your body is going to remain on alert mode because unlike a lot of us, it wants to make sure. That the threat is passed.

What is going to happen is that with each passing day, your body will re-evaluate the circumstances and if everything is normal, it will downgrade survival mode a notch. It's going to be a slow process until you are down the ladder completely.

In the meantime, you can actually help your body go through this process faster and in a more healthy way.

Engage in some serious self-care. Eat. Sleep. Shower. Organize things. I know your body will be screaming at you that things are not okay. But go on about your daily life.

What will happen is that when your body re-evaluates the day at the end of the day, it will also consider how you're going about your day.

"Everything seems normal today, too. And I'm also going about my business like normal. Immediate danger looks more distant."

Another way to help your body come off the stress ladder is to provide it with information that will help it recognize the situation as calm. Or that you are capable of getting through them if they are not. Positivity basically.

Devour media, words, images, videos that make you feel like things are better now. That they are more normal. At its core: "The immediate danger has passed."

In effect, you are surveying the surroundings and showing your body that the coast is clear.

At all costs avoid doom scrolling.

Doom scrolling will simply keep your body in survival mode. Perpetually.

This is one of the cruel ways that fascists use our bodies against us. By keeping everyone survival mode so that we stop thinking rationally.

This does not mean you are stopping to care.

It doesn't mean that you are pushing aside valid concerns.

It doesn't mean you will stop fighting.

What it means is that you can go outside, close your eyes and breathe. You won't walk back inside to a President Trump horror.

It is, however, important to remind yourself that you have not forsaken your commitment to fighting Trumpism.

You haven't forgotten about everyone who was victimized by his regime.

The struggle continues.

But the threat of unbridled fascism under Trump has ended for now.

You know what I did today? Slept. Right through the inauguration. Watched Amanda Gorman's poem later. Then slept some more. This was a long journey. But we're home now. We'll have other journeys, but hopefully, none as horrible as this one.

And animals... Really, man. If you have a cat or a dog or a bird or a snake or a vinegaroon or a hooded tick spider, it doesn't matter. Interact with them, love them, enjoy their company. Spend as much time with them as possible. Their simple life and calm will rub on you.

Last but not least, this will also help those you love and care about who are also coming off of this. Remember we're all human. We are social animals. We feel safe with others who feel... who are safe.

Let us carry each other out of this collective emotional siege together.

If you liked this thread and it helped you in anyway and you wanted to pay, you can donate to Black Lives Matter Sacramento, my hometown. :) …https://blacklivesmattersacramento-inciteinsight.nationbuilder.com/donate