Feel it… it is here - but what happens after the World Cup?
Thursday, 8 July 2010
There was an e-mail doing the rounds, related to Bafana Bafana exiting the 2010 FIFA World Cup which read:
“It does not matter that we did not qualify. What matters is our team inspired us all. What matters is they gave us hope. It does not matter that we were alone… because now we are together. What started as a game… is becoming something more”.
South Africans have embraced the 2010 FIFA World Cup and in the main, have found this international sporting celebration a positive, social experience. However, LifeLine Johannesburg acknowledges that the party will soon come to an end and that South Africans could be left feeling an immense sense of loss and emotionally bankrupt. The euphoria and the commonality that held us all together could leave individuals and couples feeling isolated and alone. Loneliness can lead to isolation, depression, despair, a sense of hopelessness, addiction and even suicide.
When there is no longer a football match or a Fan Park at which to party, or a work – or home football party at which to socialise, peoples’ feelings of loss, loneliness and isolation could be heightened.
It is possible to feel alone, even within a relationship or in a crowd. Winning, joy and festivities highlight ones sense of not being part of, or not belonging – with the corresponding emotional and spiritual loss.
According to Padraig O’Morain, a counsellor accredited by the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, writing in The Irish Times on 22 September 2009, “As humans, it is in our identity as social beings and as members of groups that we really flourish.
“This is why being ostracised from a group can be devastating. Huge parts of our identity are social, not individual. A person’s identity may be tied up with work, football, the family, a church, a political party and so on.
“When we are deprived from our social identity we partially die. Indeed, a sense of social isolation, whether justified or not, is often present when people are suicidal.”
LifeLine Johannesburg is here for any person feeling alone or lonely. The counselling line is manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Arlene Bernstein, Director, LifeLine Johannesburg said, “Evidence for the value of social involvement is growing and LifeLine Johannesburg recognises the devastation of loss and of being alone when the hype and the intensity of the World Cup ends. If you are having difficulty dealing with your life situation, your relationship, or your heavier and more overwhelming emotions, it’s time to get help!”
Bernstein continued, “LifeLine Johannesburg exists to facilitate the emotional wellness of individuals. We have some 250 highly trained, volunteer counsellors working in the LifeLine Johannesburg, Soweto and Alexandra offices. They provide a vital, 24 hour telephone counselling service, as well as Face-to-Face counselling, Rape counselling and Trauma debriefing to those people who traditionally have no access to psychosocial support”.
