GLOBE through its Hope Bank online support community held a series of webinars “#StartANewDay – Let’s Talk About Mental Health: A Forum for Educators”, which aimed to tackle mental health issues plaguing various sectors of society and find ways to help them.

One of the speakers during the mental health webinars was Rolyn Catanus-Gantalao, a grade school teacher at the Zamboanguita Central Elementary School in Negros Oriental.

Just like other teachers,  Rolyn was used to routine schedules. However,  the pandemic caused a sudden shift in plans and affected her in terms of exams, computation of grades, even graduation.

“All of a sudden, everything got cancelled. We were not prepared. It was heartbreaking for us and for kids not to experience things they looked forward to as part of their memories. We felt useless,” she said.

She also worried about what would happen to them or worse, if they might lose their jobs because there were no classes. “Many felt fear and uncertainty. Fortunately, we were given the opportunity to work, even in a different situation. Suddenly, we felt hope,” she added.

There were still other challenges.

Rolyn said most teachers were not tech savvy, there were places without internet service, and they were affected by fake  and other negative news like the call to lessen the salaries of teachers since parents will be doing most of the teaching under the new setup.

The speaker stressed that teachers are also wives, fathers, sisters, daughters, husbands, brothers and sons, with responsibilities to their families, friends and fellow men.

“Like everyone else, we also need help. That’s why we are very grateful for this webinar where issues and concerns regarding our mental health can be addressed. Sometimes teachers are not expected to share their struggles because they are seen and expected as strong so the students, even the community, are really dependent on them,” added Rolyn.

The webinar also featured mental health expert Dr. Carolina Uno-Rayco, National Executive Director of the Philippine Mental Health Association (PMHA), and Dr. Salustiano Jimenez, Director 3 and officer in charge of the Office of the Regional Director of DepEd Region 7.

Acknowledging Rolyn’s concerns, Dr. Rayco said the teachers should be provided with an environment that promotes and sustains good mental health, or avenues where they can talk about their feelings and emotions. In the middle of formal meetings, she said, there can be simple “how are you’s” or “kumustahan”  to make it a safe space with no judgment about feelings to lessen the stigma.

Moreover, she said that a work-from-home setup can be very stressful for educators because there are no more boundaries between work and home time. Thus, she stressed the need to set aside a specific time as well as physical and psychological place for work at home so the teacher will not be disturbed.

Dr. Rayco added that teachers should also find coping mechanisms that work for them like singing to relieve stress, dancing, exercise, or even breathing sessions as well as thinking of positive emotions, remaining appreciative of whatever they have, being optimistic, and employing humor and laughter to decrease stress.

“No need to push ourselves because it’s a different situation now. We can’t expect to be that productive, pre-pandemic, so no need to be excessively obsessed with work output and productivity. We need to be good to ourselves and learn to prioritize things.  Relationships can also help, not just the romantic type, knowing that someone loves us like our parents, friends, and lastly, spirituality to help make our lives purposeful,” she said.

For his part, Dr. Jimenez agreed that if teachers don’t have a strong support mechanism, there will be a breakdown.  He was thankful for the forum which was attended by educators nationwide.

“I am very happy because Globe is a formidable partner in mental health with their track record of supporting mental health organizations in the country. I hope there will be more like this to come so we’d know how we can help our teaching and non-teaching personnel here in Region 7 cope with this pandemic and other challenges.”

As a strong mental health advocate, Globe has embarked on various mental health initiatives including the creation of Hope Bank  (https://www.facebook.com/groups/267986420517932/), an online support community for those who need upliftment and encouragement.

Hope Bank seeks to empower those undergoing emotional and mental challenges caused by Covid19 and boost the morale of frontliners and patients, including educators, their families and friends.

To contribute, members can just post messages using hashtag #SpreadHOPE on their personal profiles and in the group. These can be through photos, artworks, quotes, song lyrics, poems, videos or anything that expresses hope and positivity.

Globe also partnered with organizations such as the UP Diliman Psychosocial Services (UPD PsycServ) and New Good Feelings (NGF) Mindstrong’s HOPELINE for free counseling or psychotherapy services for frontliners, Covid19 patients and relatives and people under monitoring or under investigation.