Hello Readers!
Welcome back for yet another blog! Hope you all are doing well and are staying indoors and keeping safe.
We all are going through a very difficult time right now, with the deadly virus around, we see our fellow citizens suffering, fighting for their lives. Family members and friends are praying and hoping for their better health; doctors, nurses and other medical staff pulling off 24-48 hrs. shifts to take care of our loved ones; trying to do as much as they can. Volunteers, celebrities and fellow citizens trying to help in their own ways by serving food, raising money, donating the necessary items that required. We are there for each other at this time of need.
With that being said, I would again bring your mental health in the lime light. Every day we are living in fear and anxiety of the disease, we are stressing at home because we are not able maintain a healthy work-life balance, we are worried because of losing jobs, not able to find a new one, our businesses are suffering because of the necessary lockdowns that are happening. Well, I think, it's safe to say that we are all going through something or the other.
The feelings and emotions that we are primarily dealing with right now would - stress, worry, anxiety, sadness, anger, frustration, boredom, tiredness, exhaustion, and burn-out. Yes, you got it right, I am indeed focusing on the negative feelings and emotions here. However, I'm not saying that we don't feel happy, excited, surprised, joy, satisfied, and motivated. It's just that with so much happening, the negative feelings tend to crop up more. When these negative feelings crop up, there are ways in which we can make ourselves give a ray of hope and feel positive.
I am going to start posting a series of blogs, with activities and strategies, that we use on a daily basis, to help us feel a little better, and help us deal with these negative emotions and thoughts. Let's look into some simple things we can start doing as a part of your daily life:
Make a tentative schedule, and plan ahead. Yes, it is difficult do so, but that's why I said "tentative". Plan ahead, make a list of things that you need to do for the next day. We are not only taking care of work, we are also taking care of our home, ourselves. Making that list and cutting things off of that list gives a sense of control.
Focus on the things you've checked off of that list. There will be some things which you were not able to complete, which would become a carryover for the next day. Don't worry about that, just add it to the next day's list, and do it on priority. Once you start planning ahead a habit, you'll see the number of carryovers would also reduce.
Give yourself a break! Self care is very important when it comes to being healthy - both physical and mental. Include breaks in your planning, your schedule. Even if it is a 5-10 minutes break, just take it. Try avoiding looking into another gadget while taking that break. Make a cup of tea, or coffee, go play with your children, spend some time talking to your family, play with your pet, water your plants, play an instrument, sing a song, read an article! I can go on and on.. Trust me, it helps!
Set a time for work. With the work from home in the picture, our work-life balance has become non-existent! We need to bring it back. Set a time of the day after which you would not sit with work. Draw a line, start building your boundaries. Even machines give up when they are overworked!
Exercise! Include some form of physical activity in your routine. I know, it takes a lot of motivation and you cannot go out. But, physical activities can be done at home as well. Do 10 jumping jacks, 10 push ups, climb up and down the stairs 10 times!
Mindfulness. A very important part of life which we choose to ignore in our lives is Mindfulness. Try doing a little bit of yoga, even if it is for 15 minutes. Listen to a calming music and practice breathing exercise, before going to sleep. It even helps you sleep better. Mindfulness does not mean that you'll only focus on yoga and meditation. Mandala art, or any form of creative art paired with soothing music can make you feel peaceful. Come on, with all the chaos happening around, we all deserve to have a little peace in our lives.
Leisure. Spend some time reading, listening to music, playing board games with family and friends. Half an hour a day, try spending it with your family. Maybe sit together and talk about things, reminisce about old days when you were younger and cherish them.
Finally, eat, sleep and drink plenty of fluids! Take care of yourself, your eating habits, your sleeping habits. Try drinking fluids in different forms like water, juices, coconut water. Try avoiding caffeine late in the evening. Just take care of yourself!
I know, I have spoken about a lot of things here, which practically seem impossible. But try imbibing them one by one into your daily life. When you try to do all of these things at once, you'll end feeling overwhelmed, again!
Remember, these are for you to feel less negative and more positive! Not the other way around!
I hope all these tips help you. Stay tuned for the Self-Care Series coming for the next couple of days!!
Thank you for reading, until next time, take care and stay safe!!!