With the global pandemic unfolding around us and many of us on quarantine orders set by our cities and states these days can prove to be trying.  If you’re not an essential employee it gives way to a lot of free time and some of that time may be spent in your own head.  With that extra time to yourself you may find yourself a tad more anxious and stressed than normal.  So how are you coping?

One of the things that I know for sure added to my stress is the daily news! The news has a way of highlighting all the bad going on and leaving out the good so I had to take a break from watching it.  There is so much death on the news networks I wish they would do a better job of highlighting the many people that recover! Things like that would definitely feel more promising during a time when so much seems to be going wrong. If you would like to stay in the know about what’s going on locally one way to get around the pandemic news is go to your local news website and click on the stories one by one that you would like to see. You can do the same with the national and world news networks by visiting their websites as well.  This way you can choose what news you’re consuming.

Social media can also be one of the things that adds to your stress and anxiety.  So many people have ideas about what you “should” be doing during this time or what your life “should” look like once we come out of it. Do yourself a huge favor and don’t allow those pressures to get to you! Half of those people telling you what you should be doing aren’t acting on those things anyway! The only thing you need to be doing right now is focusing on staying healthy and safe during these times.  Your mental wellbeing is a very important part of that as well! Do whatever brings you peace right now and take it day by day from there!  If you aren’t sure of what you can do to bring you peace I’ll share a few activities with you!

Quarantine Coping Activity Suggestions:

• Adult coloring books:  Adult coloring books have become really popular because they have a way of helping you reduce stress, reduce anxiety, and move your mind to something more soothing.  I’ve added a few books to my list on Amazon. There are many more but I figured it would be a good start if you’re interested in that type of activity.
  

  

  

 Amazon Shopping List

• Meditation
  • Sit or Lie down somewhere you are comfortable
  • Close your eyes
  • Breathe naturally
  • Stay in this zone for a few minutes.  You can start with a minute and add more time from there.

• Read: Find some books that interest you, something you’ve been meaning to read, or a blog that you enjoy.  You can also use this time to study a subject you’ve been wanting to take up.
• Take a break from social media: It’s as simple as that! No explanation needed.
• Go outside. Get out in your neighborhood by taking a walk or riding a bike.  Getting some much needed vitamin D can help put you in a better mood! It’s spring and there have been some beautiful days so far.  Just because you can’t go out like you may normally be doing during this time of year doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the beauty of outdoors in its simplest form.
• Listen to music! Music is amazing because it has a way of taking you to another time and space.  Sometimes I like listening to older music because it takes me back to the time of my life when I first heard it.  I’ve been watching the Verzuz battles hosted by Timbaland & Swizz Beatz on Instagram Live. The songs being played by the writers and producers have had me reminiscing.  I’ve enjoyed those moments.
• Download a Relaxation Playlist or Affirmations: This has been helpful for me when I’ve had trouble or if I become anxious. I have a few that I use that I can share with you!

 Brave Mindset Affirmations

Music for Deep Sleep

Rain Sounds

Hope these ideas help you stay calm and give you more tools to cope with during your stressful and anxious moments.

-LaMonica