A few days ago I received the certificate as a volunteer from the telephone service of the Official College of Psychology of Madrid. In these moments of “new normal” It has been a reminder of the difficult moments of confinement, between March and May of this year 2020. And from the calm (provisional) actual, It seems like a good time to process what I have experienced. And I have four words to symbolize it: commitment, resistance, humility and conscience.

When the lockdown started my basic question was “How can I contribute?”. From Spirales Consultoría de Infancia we have received many requests that we have been able to attend to, but that will be the reason for another blog post. But, at the same time, there was another dimension, from volunteering, what did i want to offer. Between the many services and resources what did he offer Official College of Psychology of Madrid, Telephoning people who need it suited me very well. From there, I have felt honored to belong to this organization that has been close to the citizenry as far as its resources have allowed.. This for me has to do with psychology, apart from being my profession, also supposes a commitment personal towards the well-being of individuals and communities. We have seen the commitment of many people and many professional groups, and this has been ours: offer listening and support to those who need it.

The beginning of the telephone attention was intense for me. The calls weren't many, but long and complex. From mourning the death of people to serious mental health difficulties. And my admiration for the ability resistance of every person I cared for. I like to say “resilience”, that word that we like so much in psychology. But “resilience” it implies “to resist” and “remake”, and in a single phone call per person I only got to see the part of “to resist”. When I see the current relaxation in the face of sanitary measures, I remember each person that I attended, with your level of suffering, and I wonder how they will live it. Are they feeling the frustration that it was not done better at the time? Are they enjoying some rest and contact? My memory is with those people who have had such a bad time, and that they will have to find the strength to continue resisting and, hopefully, to reach resilience and rebuild.

All these experiences have awakened in me a lot humility. The coronavirus is generally being a call to conscience, that as human beings we consider how we are doing in the world and look for ways to improve. For me, as a psychologist, all these experiences are assuming a humility cure. There is so much suffering that I will not be able to attend, but whoever arrives, I arrive. There are people with so many difficulties in their mental health that I do not know how to accompany, and I have to continue training. And there are so many things to improve that sometimes I find it hopeless, but my commitment is to continue cultivating hope.

Y, once again, the experience has been for me a call to the consciousness. Faced with human suffering, it is necessary to be not only as a professional, but also as a person. Human contact, how much we have missed during confinement, it is a source of well-being (when it occurs in healthy relationships). The psychological care has been for me to be there present, with empathy and also with my vulnerability (but taking charge of what I live).

And all these experiences now bring me gratitude, both to COP Madrid, especially those who have led the process, as those who have had the courage to call and trust those who attended them. My appreciation to all those people for their courage.

And my best wishes for this new phase.

F. Javier Romeo