The world has endured almost 16 months of this global COVID-19 pandemic in some form or another. Some places were hit hard, with daily deaths and large infection numbers. Others were spared some of the more traumatic events. Some lockdowns were extremely tight. Others, not so much. However your experience has been, one thing is that we all are living in abnormal times.
Businesses are hit hard and even today, shortages of components or key resources continue to impact us all. The months of lockdowns or work-from-home or virtual classrooms for children worldwide have been definitely extraordinary. Many of us had experienced or know people who have been severely impacted financially. That holds mostly true but most neglect to also count the cost of mental wellbeing. Routines disrupted, multiple lockdowns, and kids attending school at home have pushed many people to the edge. Our usual escape of going to a park, a mall, the office, or a holiday is suddenly unavailable. Life has become mundane, repetitive even. We all know we are to exercise to keep physically fit but what about mental health? Here are some simple tips to ensure mental wellbeing.
Time-out
Removing commute is suppose to give us more time for ourselves but after one-and-a-half years of work from home has shown us that the line between home and work is blurrier than usual. We need to block time for ourselves to relax, unwind, and even meditate. Extracting some personal time helps us unwind as well and focus on taking care of ourselves. In my home, each of us can take 1-2 hours of me-time where we can focus on anything we like and we try not to interrupt the person. You can listen to your favorite music, stroll in the garden, or even focus on your cup of coffee, the aromas, and relax.
Learn a new skill
Taking personal time in a day is also useful if we put some purpose or objective. Take this opportunity to learn a new skill or try something new. This gives you something to look forward to as well as to create new routines. Many have reported waking up to the day and feeling totally unmotivated to do anything at all. Is there some home improvement you always wanted to do? Perhaps you wanted to start baking or even watching a new series on Netflix. We repainted some walls, learned to cook new dishes as well as each one of us chose a new skill to learn and share our progress.
Maintain social links
Humans are social creatures and while not everyone is a party animal, having even one close friend to talk to can be beneficial to your mental wellbeing. We leave the house a lot less than before, and mask-wearing has made interactions quicker and less personal. Make an effort to at least keep in touch with some friends or family. If you stay with family, while setting some alone or me-time is useful, set time for interaction as well. Since we can’t go to the cinema or theaters, I schedule family movie nights on Friday or Saturday where each can pick a movie and we eat dinner in front of the TV. This helps us focus on relationships and each other instead of the circumstances.
Helping others / Volunteering
Helping others has been proven to improve our mental health. Much research has been done but in essence, volunteering in a cause, helps us focus on things we can control or perform. Much of the pandemic’s impact has been taking control away from us. Volunteering gives a sense of purpose. In addition, our brains are typically hardwired to receive pleasure when helping others. As a result, you tend to feel better, and happier. We took time to buy food for the needy and volunteered to deliver necessities to the elderly staying at home by themselves. This helps us put some achievable goals and objectives in our daily calendars. A sense of purpose can renew the mind.
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Hopefully, the above tips can help you make the best of the current situation. We all need to be aware that each one of us actually is affected and what we feel is not unique to us. Practice some empathy, cut each other some slack and take each day, each goal at the time.
