Sheena Halili, Jeron Manzanero take mental health break amid pandemic

Expecting parents Sheena Halili and Jeron Manzanero recently went on a trip to the mountains as a way of taking a mental health break amid the pandemic.

On Instagram, Jeron posted a selfie he took with Sheena during their short vacation to their family’s house on the mountains.

On the caption he titled an “episode of How You Met Your Parents,” he dedicated a story-telling letter to their soon-to-be-born baby girl.

“Covid sucks, kid. It really does. It sucks so bad that the entire country is under a State of Public Health Emergency for almost five months now!” said Jeron.

Jeron continued and explained how the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affected people’s physical health.

“During the earlier parts of the Public Health Emergency, this disease attacked our physical well-being. It’s flu-like symptoms really takes a toll on your respiratory system once it worsens. May lead to pneumonia. And sometimes death. Talagang disaster,” he narrated.

Jeron also stressed about how the pandemic “attacks people's mental health.”

“There are now a lot of cases of depression and anxiety. These conditions are exactly like a flu or pneumonia. If left not acknowledged, unchecked, and untreated, it may lead to more serious cases,” he wrote.

Jeron noted how both “[p]hysical and mental health are equally important.”

“Don’t let any narrow minded person tell you that mental health is nothing serious or parang ‘baliw-baliwan’ lang,” he added.

“That is why while we go to war with Covid day in day out, drown ourselves with alcohol to the point that our hands are all dry, cover our entire faces with masks and face shields—we also need to take a step back and breathe for our mental health,” Jeron said.

Jeron said this is the reason why he and Sheena took a short trip to their family’s house in the mountains.

“We thought you’d want to experience some fresh air din kasi! Breathe, kid. Breathe #HowYouMetYourParents,” he wrote.

Sheena recently shared snapshots of herself showing off her baby bump and pregnancy glow on her Instagram account.

The couple tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony at Blue Leaf Events Place in Quezon City on Feb. 23. Sheena announced she was pregnant with their first child on June 13.

Just this month, Sheena revealed they are expecting a baby girl for their first child. – Jannielyn Ann Bigtas/RC, GMA News