COVID-19: 5 Big-Picture Insights From WeTravel’s Wellness Community

1. We Are More Deeply Connected Than We Previously Realized

“Now, more than ever, it’s time to wake up to the unity that we hold within ourselves. We can all now very clearly see just how connected we all are…I spend lots of time in Loving Kindness meditation now, praying for all the world.”
-Marissa Lipovsky

“It has been a blessing to connect with students of mine from all over the world using technology. I truly feel that we will come out of this feeling more connected and full of gratitude for all that we have…Keep practicing, keep breathing, keep sharing your love and hope. Together we are creating ripples of peace and healing in our world!”
-Maria Santoferraro

“People are craving community and connection even more. It has been powerful to practice from the living room studio. Students feel like they are a part of something. Moving the body and giving a break for the mind offers a dose of normalcy and calm in these uncertain times.”
-Hillary Skibell

“The world is smaller than you think and we’re all in this together. With patience and support we can thrive.”
-Athena Engelman

2. This Pause Is A Time For Personal Growth and An Opportunity For Professional Development

“This is an opportunity to realign our lives. When we come back to normalcy, I hope it’s a new normal. I hope that we are using this as an opportunity to remember what truly matters. Aligning in this way is the best thing we can do for mind/body health.”
-Erica McQuown

“Accept what is and be as flexible as we can. Adapt to the new wave of online learning and use that as an opportunity to keep sharing the gifts of yoga. [I’m getting] over my insecurities of being in front of the camera and second language accent, and accepting my imperfection with using new technologies.”
-Kiyomi Takahashi

“I've realized how hard I've been working without much time to come up for air. Although I do sincerely practice what I preach in the realm of yoga and mindfulness, I have found my schedule continuously full to prove my worth. COVID-19 is of course an enormous crisis and a terribly unfortunate situation, yet it is also the massive pause so many of us need in order to check back in with our selves, each other, and our natural habitat.”
-Sasha Nelson

“I have realized that I need to be doing a lot more online work...I have also realized that this work is incredibly important, maybe now more than ever. We need personal connection and personal growth to stay grounded and mentally, physically, and emotionally healthy in a chaotic world.”
-Jamie Blackburn

“All wellness businesses are realizing the importance of supporting their people online with much greater depth. Going forward, I believe that every yoga studio will host in person as well as online classes. Many people are realizing now, through necessity, that it is possible to participate in and tangibly benefit from online wellness, so that will open the online market further. There will still be a need for human connection and that is where retreats will help support our communities as concentrated social and wellness experiences.”
-Linda McGrath

3. Our Values, and The Way We See Our Future, Are Forever Changed

“We are not in control. All we can control is our reaction to this experience. By choosing to focus on serving my clients, in whatever way possible, I am finding myself more willing to surrender to whatever will be.”
-Kathi Szabo

“[I’ve realized] how temporary everything is. How nothing is in our control. How connected we all are, whether we like it or not. How important it is for us to step up and emerge from this into a new and different (positive) world.”
-Julie Murphy

“[This] points to our need to live with moderation, more respect, cooperation, and humility. Please let that be an outcome of this experience!”
-James Kapicka

“Many of us…knew how we, as a global society, were racing toward a deadly cliff with our compulsive consumption patterns and broken value system. Nevertheless, we did still not take serious actions. The current crisis is the wake-up call we needed…to slow our pace and turn around, firstly individually and then collectively…This is our chance to shift and start making things right, in alignment and harmony with what has always been our house, mother earth.”
-Mauricio Diaz

“There will be life in harmony with the planet after Covid-19. We can change - we are living it now.”
-Iris Disse

“My hope is to see people live their lives more after COVID-19. I think the potential of being on self-quarantine in such lengthy amounts of time will breed the desire for adventure and travel once all is normal again. I don't think we realize how much we have taken those little luxuries for granted.”
-Shonna Chiles

4. We Are Confronting Anxieties, Old and New

“It has felt like a rug was pulled from underneath my feet. Making decisions based on the incredible amount of information, and deciding which is credible and not credible, has been the biggest challenge.”
-Patricia Pinto

“I am mostly worried about the emotional and mental trauma that the virus can and will inflict on everyone, especially for Americans who were already experiencing a mental health crisis. We are finally forced to face the impact of our inadequate mental health system.”
-Celia Polyzou

“Everything is so unpredictable at this moment that we have to take this day by day...This experience is traumatizing and people will be slow leaving their homes and venturing out into the world after this.”
-Joan Hyman

“[In] this man-made global crisis I have realized the power of the collective mind to either choose to reside in LOVE or in FEAR, and redefined fear as FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL! I realized I value [my] freedom above all else…Others may value perceived safety over freedom, and are willing to sacrifice freedom for false safety…That scares me!”
-Malaika MaVeena Darville

5. But Through It All, We Are Resilient

"As a meditation and yoga practitioner and teacher of more than 20 years, I realize how lucky I am to have the capacity to be with myself, the strength to support others, and the willingness to ask for help, as we all move through this, together."
-Rebecca Soule

“I wrote a new mantra in late March, that I am teaching all students and practitioners to use daily: ‘I am Healthy, I am Strong, and The Immune System is impenetrable!’”
-Michael Gannon

“It is important to live your life as best you can, all the time. Things like this are inevitable but with the right attitude, and a positive outlook, things will get better!”
-Shayna Hasson

“Good is contagious. Stay positive - all will be well”!
-Ayesha Davis

"The circumstances surrounding COVID-19 offer an opportunity to take yoga ‘off the mat.’ Non-attachment, acceptance, resilience, surrender, and compassion are meant to be understood through direct experience, not intellectual or philosophical means. Our ability to navigate this challenging time is a testament to how willing we are to embrace the present moment."
-Nicole Catenazzi