Since the COVID-19 outbreak, fear has gripped nations across the world. As developments and updates of the disease have taken over the news and social media, it’s normal to feel a wave of uncertainty, stress, anxiety, and worry.
It’s understandable to deal with negative emotions, but that doesn’t mean neglecting your health and well-being while you’re quarantined at home.
Here are six ways to take care of yourself during these trying times.
Take Media Breaks
The news that you watch, listen or read can be overwhelming. If you have a habit of spending hours looking at the news, chances are you will be mentally drained even before the day ends. Instead of checking the latest development on the outbreak, try to minimize your media intake to about 15-20 minutes a day. In this way, you can get updates but also, you’re taking care of your mental health.
Open Up
If you’re already in an overthinking spiral, there’s a big chance your daily activities will be affected. You may not feel like continuing your work at home or just be demotivated. What you can do is to acknowledge the current situation and tell someone about it. You have every right to be anxious, but you also have the capability to cope and get yourself out of those negative thought patterns. Talking to a friend, be it online or a phone call, will definitely ease your worries and lift your mood.
Curb Your Anxiety
Knowing and hearing about the outbreak frequently can be upsetting and may increase your anxiety. To help manage your anxiety, try the following steps:
- Remember that the situation is temporary and it will pass.
- If you’re living alone, always stay in touch with loved ones through phone calls or social media.
- As stated above, limit news intake.
- Do activities that make you happy like beading, arts and crafts or reading.
- Get enough sleep.
- Minimize caffeine intake to lessen the jitters.
Stay Focused and Productive
When working from home, stick to your routine. Maintain the same bedtime hours so you’ll wake up refreshed. If you have a lawn, take a walk outside so you can breathe in fresh air and get a bit of sunlight. If you have kids, engage in creative activities like puzzles, board games or reading.
Nourish Your Body
Eat a healthy diet, take your vitamins, sleep well, drink lots of water, meditate, and do your favorite exercise. Obviously, you can’t go to the gym but there are lots of home workout videos online. Also, take a few minutes outside to get some sun (if you have a yard, a balcony, a terrace or any part in the house where you can catch some rays).
Be Grateful
Do you ever think about the things you’re grateful for? Pull out your journal or any piece of writing pad and start making a list of 5 things you are grateful for everyday. This is a great way to start your day so you can remind yourself that even if we’re in the midst of uncertainties, there are still plenty of things to be grateful for like your family, food on the table, your kids, your job, and most importantly, your health.
As we all continue to grapple with this pandemic, what we can do is to remain focused and grounded, keep things in perspective, and learn how to carry on. Take care of yourself, have faith, and believe that we can all get through these difficult times.