These are trying times. I don’t think anyone ever expected we would be living this reality right now. It is promising to see MOST people doing the right thing and staying home. But staying home for many of us comes with increased challenges- working from home, spending every minute of every day with your family, no social gatherings, limited food options, or no human contact. I don’t think anyone is thriving in the current situation. I know everyone wants to use this downtime for some great advancement, but for most people, that’s just not a realistic option, or at least not right now.
I know I initially thought I would be so productive with all this downtime, but the reality hit me that I was going to face the beginning of this quarantine while sick. It’s been nearly two weeks, and I’m still sick off and on. No, I don’t know if it’s Covid-19, and I don’t plan to get tested because there are limited tests and I’m able to safely quarantine and get through it. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit there was part of me trying to guilt myself for not getting more things done right now even while I’m sick. Why do we do that to ourselves? Isn’t simply surviving right now good enough? Considering the mass level of anxiety vibrating through the world right now, there is no way that anyone is immune to it. The best thing we can do right now is taking care of ourselves. If that means you need to eat ice cream and watch Tiger King on Netflix to get through the day, then do it. If you can’t manage to brush your hair today, that’s ok. If you need to call a friend and talk about how insane things are and wonder if it will ever get better, go for it. We will survive this.
I would be remiss to not try and encourage you to find some small way to improve your mood each day. Find the positive news stories to read. Reach out to someone that’s great at making you laugh. Find something new about your kids that you haven’t noticed before. I’m personally so grateful that I’ve now seen my daughter interact at school. I’m so proud of how much she contributes to her classes. She’s honestly loving the e-learning option and is just sailing through this whole situation. She inspires me. She watches historical drama series with me when I get aches and pains and need to curl up. Go out for a walk, or just sit on your porch and study the nature around you. Listen to music that reminds you of a happier time. I caught a live Facebook feed over the weekend from some DJs in Chicago and hearing some of my favorite house music songs from the 90s brought such emotion to me that I honestly got tears in my eyes. So I’m finding a few things to enjoy even with all the other stressors. I’ve blocked out thinking about how bad it could get because I don’t want to give that any power. Each day is new, and I address it that way. Each day is a chance for things to get a little bit better with my efforts to find the good around me.
How are you caring for yourself right now? Are you reaching out when you need a connection? Are you finding ways to laugh? Can you find a tiny bit of faith that this will all end someday and life will return to a more familiar state? Those tiny actions are going to help you through. Just like you stock up on food and necessities, sometimes you need to stock up on some positive thoughts and actions to help keep you moving towards a better tomorrow. Embrace the things that you can change – your perspective, your attitude, your vibration, your connections, your social media influences. If you need someone to help move your mind in a more positive direction, I’m here for you! If nothing else, I have an endless supply of adorable pictures of my dogs and llamas.
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