A citizen's guide to navigating what's happening.

​In an unexpected turn of events, all 50 states have protested George Floyd's murder and the murder of Black Americans across the country. That. is. huge.

​​Really, though, it was time. Black Americans have been suffering at the hands of American colonialism for 400 years, so, if anything, a revolution is overdue. But, I am not obtuse. I know we have seen this before. When I attended the protests in Chicago, I felt stark parallels to the civil rights movement of the 60s.

As we marched down King Drive, I understood that change is on the horizon. When we sat in Washington Park while pastors rallied up a festival-like audience, I realized that now was the time to act. We had not only been victimized by COVID-19, said Pastor Otis Moss, but also by COVID 1619 and COVID 45 as we deal with domestic terror.
 
Given the momentum that’s been revved up, it would be remiss of me not to call this what it is – a revolution. Now that it is here, we must act with care and caution moving forward. In the following guide, I will offer suggested actions you can take to navigate and sustain the revolution we are currently seeing in America.

You are going to be okay

Editor's Note: This is the last in a three-part article series about healthcare and mental health during COVID-19. This last article will offer solutions to the prior articles and will include brief mentions of a manic episode.

So, you’ve just been diagnosed with a mental disorder. What’s next? When doctors told me that I had Bipolar, I was curious, angry, relieved, and frantic – all at once. For years, that “thing” that I could not explain finally made sense, which explains the relief and curiosity. 
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Yet, I was also in the middle of a manic episode, so I was frantic and upset. Why did I have to get Bipolar, I asked myself. Had I not suffered enough? Then, I took some time to reflect further, and I realized I did not “get” anything; it was always there.