From a Wall Street Journal column by Jere van Dyk headlined “A Hostage’s Guide to Isolation”:
I spent 45 days in Pakistan as a hostage of the Taliban in 2008. A college friend recently sent a note asking if I had any suggestions as to how people can physically and mentally cope with their coronavirus-induced confinement. Here’s what I told him:
Be calm. Try not to be afraid.
Set a regimen. Get up early. Use that time to pray, meditate or exercise.
Don’t eat too much. It will make you listless. Try not to sleep during the day. It’s a form of escape. Don’t live in the dark. Natural light is best. We lived in darkness. I was always seeking the light. . . .
In captivity everything becomes primal. A hierarchy develops. You become territorial, no matter how small your corner. The same, I believe, would happen in a home, even in a loving family. Don’t seek power; give it to others if necessary. Be humble. Seek to get along with everyone, because everyone is afraid, and when people are afraid they can become irrational. . . .
Try to accomplish something: reading part of a book, learning new words, even of a foreign language, doing more push-ups, playing the piano, whatever it is, every day. Write letters. They are more intimate than emails, and you’ll feel good. . . .
Keep a journal. It helps you free yourself and become relaxed. It is a form of therapy. You will find that you are stronger than you think. Shakespeare wrote that “there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” Try to think like this.”. . .
John McCain said there were no atheists in the Hanoi Hilton. They found comfort in prayer. So did I.
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Mr. van Dyk is author, most recently, of “The Trade: My Journey Into the Labyrinth of Political Kidnapping.”
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