Praise that the pandemic has forced China to address mental illness in a healthier way

 

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/pandemic-pushes-china-towards-acceptance-of-mental-health-problems-1.4448247

Heavenly Father, we thank you for another demonstration of how you can bring good things out of bad circumstances. Today we celebrate that the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed China to address mental illness in a healthier way. Having been hidden and suppressed since the time of Mao, mental illness has been denied or stigmatized. With fewer than nine mental health professionals for every 100,000 residents, resources and care are extremely hard to find in China. Thank you that the overall trauma of the pandemic has forced Chinese citizens and government officials to acknowledge that trauma is real and has a genuine impact on people—and that it is OK for the affected to ask for help. We thank you that hotlines have been created and that schools are providing resources for students. We pray, Lord, for continued growth in this area. We pray for stereotypes to be broken, more people to seek training in this field, and for those who struggle to seek help from both you and mental health providers. Lord, we also pray for frontline healthcare workers in China, more than half of whom have been showing signs of depression in the aftershocks of the pandemic. Rally support and resources around them, that they may find healing, even as they bring healing to others. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.