How to deal with Life After Coronavirus Lockdown
Lockdown’s Side Effects
It won’t just be people who have a mental health problem who are affected.
“It can feel really weird to go outside after being indoors for a long time,” says Nicky Lidbetter, CEO of Anxiety UK, an organization that assists people with mental health problems.
“You can lose faith in doing things you haven’t had to do in a long time.”
What would you do if you’re worried about the coronavirus?
There are things you should do to help you deal with lockout and the eventual readjustment that must take place after sanctions are removed, whether you either have an anxiety condition or have faced anxiety for the first time as a result of the pandemic.
“Change is complicated for people,” Ms Lidbetter says. “It’s not realistic to hope to go from 0 to 100 in a single day. If you’re having trouble settling back into a schedule, don’t be too harsh on yourself.
“We find it difficult to get into the lockout protocol, so it stands to reason that getting out of the routine would be difficult as well.”
She warns that as we begin to leave the house more often, we should be mindful that it will be a “physiological as well as a mental phase.”
“When we go outside, we are bombarded by sensations, which can result in sensory deprivation.”
Throughout this time, she urges people to be “gentle and kind to themselves.”
“There is support for those who are really dealing with fear who have discovered that the lockdown and the pandemic have really heightened their anxiety.”
As countries continue to lift lockdown and relax COVID-19 constraints, a fresh ‘new standard’ is emerging. While the loosening of constraints is a hopeful indication that things are getting better, you may find yourself feeling more anxious at this moment. Over the pandemic, many people have become used to or find refuge in their lockout routine. So, rather than returning to life as it was before the pandemic, trying to adapt to a new period of confusion may seem unfamiliar or disturbing. It’s important to note that feeling anxious or overwhelmed is a common reaction to these unique circumstances. While we do not have power of external circumstances, we do have control over how we react to them.
What is the concept of self-care?
Self-care means taking care of your wellbeing and spending time doing stuff you like. It’s always portrayed to us as a pleasure or a treat, but it’s really an important part of feeling and remaining well. During tough times, it may seem that we don’t have enough time to exercise self-care, and it may slip to the bottom of our priority list.
However, even five minutes of concentrating on our breath or stretching may be beneficial. These little acts of self-care add up over time to build a more robust image of ourselves and improve our coping mechanisms.
Another essential element of self-care is self-compassion and how we speak about ourselves. If you have dependents or work on the front lines, you may think it’s selfish to take time for yourself, but you can’t pour from an empty cup. Simply put, you can’t serve anyone until you have the energy and willpower to look after yourself first.
Everyone’s preferences are different, so different self-care practices will work for them. Spend more time worrying about the things you need to do to take care of yourself, as well as what you should do with the present situation. Remember, self-care isn’t anything we do once in a while while we’re feeling stressed; it’s something we need to do on a regular basis.
Take care of your body.
Exercise, diet, and sleep are three of the most important components of a healthy lifestyle. When you’re going through a struggle and adapting to new rules and constraints, it may feel weird to rely on yourself and engage in everyday things like exercise. However, at a time like this, it’s more important than ever to preserve your stamina and physical fitness, because stress places a lot of pressure on your body and mind.
Be aware of unhelpful coping mechanisms that can creep into the routine at stressful moments, such as overeating or drinking more alcohol than normal. Although this can offer immediate relief, they can also have a detrimental effect.
Exercise is an essential aspect of your fitness to concentrate on through difficult periods. Having a workout schedule brings a beneficial aspect to your day because exercise activates endorphins, which make you feel healthy. It will also have a knock-on impact on other aspects of your fitness, such as improving your sleep quality and making it easier to eat healthily. If you’re having trouble inspiring yourself to get going, try video messaging with a friend and working out together, or sign up for an online workshop.
In Pursuit of Rhythm in Daily Life
Spending time doing stuff you like is a positive way to regain yourself after faced with a stressful situation. Hobbies, fitness, jobs, and other personal or artistic pursuits are examples. Remember, it’s fine if you don’t get all right the first time!
During busy moments, it’s also important to keep track of how much time you waste on your computer, laptop, and television. Constantly checking for COVID-19 alerts or mindlessly browsing will lead to anxiety and frustration. It’s all too easy to get wrapped up in other people’s thoughts and beliefs when you’re online. It’s vital not to equate your life to someone else’s highlight reel, particularly during periods of confusion and tension.
Find easy, enjoyable experiences that suit your schedule and values. When you’re fully immersed in an action or mission that you like, it’s easy to lose track of time. This is referred to as movement.
Tip : Give some ‘you’ time a goal. Perhaps you like the nights, or maybe you prefer the evenings. Whichever you are, plan a moment of the day that you are most likely to have the energy and time to do something you love, and set a note or add it on your calendar so you don’t forget.
Compassionate Self-Talk & Self-Compassion.
Stress, failure, and failures are inevitable facets of existence that cannot be fully prevented. You do, though, have power of how you handle yourself when these stressful incidents occur. When things aren’t going well, it’s tempting to handle yourself badly, so it’s critical to recognize certain thoughts or actions and approach yourself with kindness.
When things aren’t going right, self-compassion is about how you speak to yourself.
Being consciously caring to yourself means being mindful of your desires and understanding that they are being unbearable. It’s not about making excuses for your mistakes. When things go wrong, we prefer to blame ourselves and judge ourselves much harsher than we would any human, and this critical self-talk is incredibly natural. You have the power to alter this destructive voice if you can hear it. When something goes wrong, reframe it as a mishap rather than assigning personal responsibility, “What is wrong with me?”, “Why do I still get it wrong?”
The first step in separating yourself from relentless self-judgment and fostering compassionate self-talk is to recognize your negative self-talk. Compassionate self-talk is something you say about yourself that is supportive, kind, positive, caring, inspiring, or calming. Talk about yourself as if you were listening to a close friend.
When modifying rules, for example, you may make a mistake and fail to wash your hands once. Rather than berating yourself and thinking, “I’m such a fool, I’m going to get sick now,” say, “Everyone makes mistakes; I’ll learn from this and try to make it a habit so I don’t fail every time.”
Piece of advice: The aim of positive self-talk is to build a less judgmental inner dialogue that explains the same truth but in a far more compassionate fashion. When you hear yourself doing something critical, speak about yourself in a kind and forgiving tone, as if you were a young child.
How to Schedule Self-Care Time
You can feel as though you don’t have time to take a rest, let alone practice self-care when you’re going through a tough time. In every given day, we play a multitude of tasks in multiple facets of our lives. This includes everything from your job to becoming a parent or partner to doing volunteer service in your neighborhood. Juggling all of these duties and positions can be a complex juggling act. This is going to be much more complicated after a disaster, when the tasks and schedules may have been disrupted.
It’s important to remember that you won’t be able to perform these tasks in a typical fashion. Don’t be too harsh on yourself. Perhaps it is appropriate for your child to watch a little more television so that you can complete a task. Perhaps it is appropriate for you to refuse a proposal from work if doing so will minimize your time with your family.
When prohibitions are lifted, you may feel compelled to return to pre-pandemic levels of activity, but we still live in unpredictable times. Be sure you’re rational on how well you will do in each aspect of your life, and strive to prioritize the most important tasks.
As constraints relax, you may feel forced to return to pre-pandemic levels of activity, but we still live in unpredictable times. Be sure you’re optimistic on what you will do in each aspect of your life, and strive to prioritize the most important tasks.
The ‘Time Management Matrix,’ created by Stephen Covey, divides our daily duties and activities into four quadrants. This may be a helpful tool to help you handle tasks, particularly when we step through new phases of the pandemic and our routines shift.
Quadrant 1 operations are those that are crucial and must be accomplished rapidly.
Quadrant 2 operations are major projects that must be accomplished.
Quadrant 3 events are those that seem urgent but aren’t as important to you as they are, but aren’t as important as they appear.
Quadrant 4 activities are the non-essential and non-urgent activities that we all participate in to pass the time.
