coronavirus wellness resources
MANAGING STRESS & ANXIETY
Text SHARE to 741741 to reach a crisis counselor, 24/7 for free, confidential support
Crisis Text Line counselors are available to connect about anxiety related to the novel coronavirus, isolation, students’ concerns about school, financial stress and other concerns
https://www.crisistextline.org/get-help/coronavirus
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fprepare%2Fmanaging-stress-anxiety.html
IDENTIFYING RELIABLE INFORMATION ON COVID-19
https://newslit.org/updates/covid-19-dont-share-misinformation/
MINDFULNESS
Calm.com
Headspace.com
EXERCISE DURING A PANDEMIC
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-gyms-exercise-social-distancing/608278/
www.nandiyoga.com
UPLIFTMENT & ART
https://storycorps.org/sign-up/
https://artsandculture.google.com/
SUPPORTING CHILDREN & TEENAGERS
https://emersoncollective.com/articles/2020/03/covid19-resources-for-remote-learning/
VOLUNTEER TO SUPPORT OTHERS
And if you’re looking for a way to serve others—during this difficult time, and beyond it—consider training as a crisis counselor for Crisis Text Line. The training can be done from home, and teaches the skills of reflective listening, collaborative problem solving, and crisis management.
https://www.crisistextline.org/become-a-volunteer/
Resources to find help
Have you, or someone you know, experienced a hate crime in the coronavirus response, which has especially targeted Asian communities?
Mental health for frontline workers: Low-cost, online services for frontline communities, including health care workers, first responders, and other essential service providers without the option of staying home.
Multilingual information on coronavirus: Information is available in 79 languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, American Sign Language, and more.
Health care workers needing masks: Use MaskMatch.com to request that folks with spare N95 or surgical masks send them to you.
Resources for domestic violence survivors and people experiencing homelessness: National hotlines and community tips for especially vulnerable communities, with resources for both at-risk individuals and the organizations that provide direct services to these communities. People experiencing homelessness should also refer to this website to find a shelter and other resources.
Undocumented and seeking health care: A guide to the health care options of undocumented community members. The National Immigration Law Center also created their guide on the rights of undocumented persons seeking health care and navigating private insurance and Medicaid.
Artists and members of the gig economy: Find resources, including emergency funding and community care opportunities, on this website.
General anxiety support: Get smart tips on managing the financial, emotional, and mental anxiety of this pandemic.
Tipped and service industry workers: Ask for financial support from a mutual aid fund set up by One Fair Wage.
Resources to offer help
Send equipment to health care workers: Use MaskMatch.com to send spare N95 masks and surgical masks to individual health care workers, or use GetUsPPE.org to see what health care centers in your community need and how to donate.
Learn to disrupt racism: This is a skill we all need to have all the time, and developing it now will help address the rising rate of hate crimes against Asian communities we're seeing in response to the coronavirus.
Donate to relief funds: Millions have been hit with joblessness, with vulnerable communities often receiving the hardest hit or being excluded from stimulus efforts. There are countless ways to contribute—like the linked fund to provide rent relief to undocumented communities in Seattle, this Twitter thread of queer/trans artists in the gig economy, or the One Fair Wage relief fund for tipped and service industry workers, a fund to which MoveOn members have already donated more than $100,000.
Consider creating your own mutual aid network: Here's a great guide to getting started, with more resources linked, and join the Mutual Aid slack network for more resources and community.
Food Security
Volunteer at a Food Bank
Feeding America
Over half of all soup kitchens, food pantries and meal programs rely entirely on volunteers. Feeding America can help you identify the best place to help in your neighborhood.
Support Food to Seniors
Meals on Wheels
Seniors are among those at greatest risk during the COVID-19 crisis. Local Meals on Wheels programs are focused on keeping older Americans safe and nourished. You can donate monetarily, or, if able, volunteer to deliver meals.
Education and Civic Engagement
Send a Letter to a Student in a Juvenile Justice Center
Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings
Students who are incarcerated are being isolated from their teachers and loved ones as prisons struggle to deal with the crisis. Sign up with CEEAS’s Care-Mail program to write a student a letter and let them know they are not alone.
Become a Citizen Archivist
The National Archives
Volunteers tag and transcribe records, making The National Archives more searchable and accessible to people across the country.
Translation and Legal Services
Provide Language Services for Migrants
Tarjimly
Multilingual volunteers can download the Tarjimly app and sign up to serve as an on-demand translator for refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants.
Offer Legal Services
We The Action
If you are a lawyer, We The Action can connect you to hundreds of nonprofits that need legal services—which now includes many organizations responding to the coronavirus. If you’re not a lawyer, share this platform with family and friends who are.
Blood and Plasma Donations
Donate Blood
The American Red Cross, America’s Blood Centers, and AABB.org
With blood drives cancelled, blood banks are facing severe shortages. Donations from healthy individuals are needed now to maintain a sufficient blood supply. The following organizations can help you identify a location to donate in your community:
The American Red Cross
America’s Blood Centers
AABB.org
Donate Convalescent Plasma
The American Red Cross, Columbia University
Plasma from volunteers who contracted COVID-19 and have fully recovered have the potential to help current patients with serious, life-threatening infections. If you believe you qualify, the following organizations can screen you and help arrange a donation:
The American Red Cross
Columbia University
Volunteer Platforms
Be A Neighbor
VOMO
'Be A Neighbor' campaign on VOMO helps neighbors find local volunteer opportunities, ranging from supporting local food banks to buying and delivering groceries for someone at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 or who are in quarantine. Volunteers are critical to the COVID-19 response and community organizations are starting to see a coming tsunami of need.
Volunteer Remotely or On-Site
VolunteerMatch
VolunteerMatch's portal features virtual and on-site volunteer opportunities to aid communities impacted by COVID-19. Thousands of volunteers are needed daily. Check back often to find ways you can help during these difficult times.
Other Ways to Help
Support Food Organizations on the Frontlines
America's Food Fund
America’s Food Fund helps to ensure people have reliable access to food. All funds directly support the work of World Central Kitchen and Feeding America as they continue to coordinate, mobilize and distribute meals to those impacted by COVID-19.
Support Independent Booksellers
Bookshop, IndieBound
When buying reading material for your time at home, use Bookshop or IndieBound to find a local independent bookstore to support with your purchase, and give back to your local book community.
Help Provide School Supplies for Kids Learning at Home
DonorsChoose
DonorsChoose has been helping equip classrooms for years. Now that students and teachers are at home, their 'Keep Kids Learning' campaign is helping close the gap for students who need basic supplies to keep their education on track. Donated funds go to teachers who purchase the materials their students need most.
Buy Gift Cards for Local Businesses
Help Main Street!
Use this searchable map to find businesses near you offering gift cards, which effectively act as no-interest loans until they are back up and running.
For more ideas, please look to your local news outlets and state and local government resources for ideas specific to your community. And we’ll continue to update this list as opportunities arise. Feel free to share with your friends, loved ones, and networks as we all navigate this difficult time together.
*Thank you to Emerson Collective and MoveOn for these resources.
