Hello, I'm Nula McGovern, and we're bringing you coronavirus global conversations here on the BBC World Service.

I do think that these are beautiful, strengthening lessons as a society that we will carry forward, and that will also be the thing that gets us through this.

As concern grows around the world for our collective mental well-being during the pandemic,

psychologists share some practical coping strategies and a potential benefit once this is all over.

Let's start in New York, the most diverse city on the planet.

The first reported cases of coronavirus COVID-19 were in China.

Since then, the disease has spread across Asia and Europe and has now extended across the Atlantic to the United States.

The world's largest economy has taken a spectacular nosedive with record layoffs and 10 million unemployment claims within just two weeks.

My name is Sally Osborne. I live in a small town in West Texas. I filed for unemployment for the first

time Tuesday morning. I'm a property manager. I'm a bookkeeper and I'm a photographer. My

photography is just done for now. My bookkeeping has been cut in half. My son and I also cleaned two of the

shopping centers that I'm assistant manager on. And I received an email Monday from my owner on

those shopping centers telling me to cut all cleaning, all landscaping to turn off the parking lot

lights.

And for the first time in my life, I'm 67 years old.

I filed for unemployment.

I just felt wrong for doing this, but I'm not going to have much income coming in.

I'm a single parent of four. My kids are grown.

My oldest son is mentally disabled,

but he's worked at a grocery store for 22 years and he's still working. And so right now

he's the only income we may have. But I just want people to know that it's okay to fall for

unemployment right now and that we will all get through this together. Sally from Texas,

...