Feeling anxious about social distancing and the stay at home order? Check out some of my favorite ideas for keeping your sanity.
As an extroverted, extremely social person this social distancing thing has been a little brutal. I am 100% behind social distancing. I know how important it is for all of us to do our parts to flatten the curve so that our healthcare system doesn’t get overwhelmed. But I am seriously craving some socialization. Thankfully I have my kids to keep me company. I never knew how many activities you could do with a four-year-old and a four-month-old.
10 Tips to Help Save Your Sanity
- Keep your morning getting ready routine: I have been getting up (albeit a little later than normal) and getting ready exactly as if I were going to work. I get dressed, brush my teeth, wash my face (I shower at night before bed), put my hair up, and put my make up on. This helps get my brain into go-time mode. I have also noticed that my mental state is much better on mornings that I do my normal routine.
- FaceTime Phone Calls: How lucky are we to live in a time where video calls exist? Anytime I start feeling too cooped up, I give my mom, best friend, or siblings a call. Even a quick chat while getting to see their beautiful faces makes me feel better. It is also comforting to realize that I am not going through this alone.
- Virtual Gatherings: The other night I called my best friend to watch a movie together. My four-year-old was so excited to get to watch a movie with one of her favorite people. We started the movie at the same time and texted each other throughout to express any reactions or to ask questions. At the end of the movie we called each other again to talk about it. It was almost like we were watching it in the same room.
- Dive into that Spring cleaning: If we’re all going to be stuck at home we might as well be productive, right? What better time to get all your spring cleaning done? Go through drawers and closets to find clothes to donate. Really deep clean all the little nooks and crannies that get missed in your normal cleaning. We should all be disinfecting high traffic areas anyways like door handles, sinks, light switches, etc.
- Rearrange your furniture: After a week of social distancing I was already sick of staring at my living room. I couldn’t take it anymore. We went for it and rearranged the all the furniture. Now it feels like I have a whole new space! I still feel warm and fuzzy inside looking at my new living room.
- Listen to a new (or old favorite) book series on Audible: I had very strong feelings about not turning my television on during the day. My daughter is most likely going to get more screen time than normal anyways. But I NEED background noise to keep me from going crazy. Music only gets me so far, and it is too easy for me to tune it out. I love to read, but there are too many other things I feel like I should be doing. Enter – listening to a book! What a great way to introduce a new series! Or you could be like me and re-listen to an old favorite (good old Harry Potter for the win…I owe JK Rowling so much). Starting a series, specifically, gives you the advantage of having multiple books to take up more time.
- Look up some at-home workout routines: There are so so so many options out there for at-home workouts. You can find yoga, body weight exercises, cardio, Zumba, and so much more. I am lucky enough to have a ten-ish pound weight (my four-month-old) to help me with weighted workouts. It is good for the mind, body, and soul to stay active. If you don’t want to find a new workout app, YouTube has a plethora of videos. My daughter in particular loves the Cosmic Kids Yoga stories on YouTube, and I love getting to do them with her. Bonus bonding time!
- Go outside: The weather here in Kansas hasn’t been great lately, but that is no excuse not to get outside. Put on your cold weather or rainy weather gear and get out there! I promise you will feel better after a walk outside. Stay away from parks, and don’t forget to maintain that six foot distance between you and other people. But there is no reason not to get outside for some cleansing fresh air. Everyone keep your fingers crossed for some warmer weather!
- Get creative: After so many days, I just cannot play the same game one more time. Here is where some creativity can get you far. Repurpose an old whisk as a fine motor activity and stuff it full of cotton balls for your kids to remove. Get out your Tupperware containers for a ball toss game. Not great of thinking up ideas? That is okay! We also live in a time where Pinterest exists.
- Remember, we are all in this together: Reminding myself that this is not happening just to me, but to everyone in the country and many other places around the world keeps away my self-pity. Most other people are in the same boat as me, and to be honest, how lucky am I to be able to stay home with my kids? I am not considered “essential.” I get to spend extra time with my children and stay safe at home.
Social distancing and self-isolation are not always fun. It is, however, extremely important. We have the opportunity to flatten the curve and keep our healthcare system from getting overwhelmed. We have the opportunity to keep our parents, grandparents, and other immunocompromised individuals safe. Keep doing it for them. You got this!
We Can Do This!
Coach Carly
