At the beginning, it was: scary, dramatic, unsettling, disrupting, shocking… something new.
Now it is: a slog, tiresome, boring, tedious, wearing, relentless… interminable.
That is how I feel anyway.
I have observed in myself that some days I feel overwhelmed and it gets me down.
I am worried about the world’s mental health.
I wonder how everyone will cope with this very long-lasting bout of extra stress.
And many people are facing much more stress than me, e.g. massive financial, work, relationship, cabin-fever or health issues.
We can only control the controllable.
One area we can control is our self-care.
We can all improve it by 5%.
4 quick ways to improve our self-care by 5%:
- Spend time with your best friends – by phone/video/in-person (if allowed). Not just text messages. Share your troubles.
- Cut down on news by 5%. It’s good to read the news but can you check once less a day. I’ve now cut to just reading the print edition of The Economist, which arrives once a week. Anything really urgent, my wife will tell me!
- Nurture gratitude. In the evening, Christine and I have recently started listing 20 (small) good things from the day to each other – it takes 10 minutes. Afterwards, my mood is completely uplifted and I sleep better.
- Sleep and exercise more (5% more)
What about you? What have you found helpful in this long, challenging season?
#selfcare #resilience #Covid-19
Would you like to read more tips for dealing with getting through this pandemic?