Coping During Covid - Top Tips!

Is anyone else finding the Covid restrictions and isolation hard? Us too! We have put together a few ideas below that have helped us. We hope you will find them helpful too!

In general

1) Do breathing or mindfulness activities to help manage some of the stress or anxiety you might be feeling. For example:

• Notice where you are right now and what is happening in the moment rather than getting caught up in the "what might happen"

• Do yoga to YouTube videos

• Use apps such as Calm.com, Smiling Minds or Headspace.

2) Focus on what you can do rather than what you can’t. For example, you can:

• Go for a walk or sit outside

• Notice the colour of the sky, the breeze, the sounds of birds etc

• Make a coffee and have virtual catch ups with friends

• Watch your favourite TV shows or discover some new ones.

3) Eat healthily, get some exercise and sleep. Your immune system functions much better when it is well nourished, energised and refreshed.

4) Listen to facts rather than opinions. Watch and listen to reputable news and information sources. Look for positive stories and avoid sensationalistic social media feeds. Take a break from social media or the news if you need to!

5) At the end of each day, reflect on what you can appreciate or feel grateful for. Notice any positives about the situation in general or that may have happened that day. Try for at least 3 things. They don’t have to be big!

When self-isolating at home

1) Maintain a routine. Eating and sleeping at usual times. Schedule a variety of activities each day in your diary and do them! Made sure you include activities that help you to feel productive, that you enjoy, and that help you feel good.

2) Go outside each day if the weather permits. Sit in the sun, feel the breeze, notice any trees or flowers, hear the sounds of nature and, if possible, feel the grass under your feet or get your fingers dirty in the garden soil.

3) Maintain your activity levels. For example:

• Do an online exercise class

• Put your phone on the other side of the room so you have to get up to use it. Or better still, walk around when talking with someone.

• Dance to some music - one of our favourites!

4) Embark on some projects, particularly if there are things you have been wanting to do. You could:

• Sort through your photos and create some albums

• Start a craft project like knitting or crocheting a rug

• Tidy the linen cupboard, pantry or shed

• Establish a veggie garden.

When working/researching at home

1) Create your work/research environment. Try to create an environment that you can feel calm and productive in. Place some items from your usual workplace e.g., plants or photos that you would usually have on your desk around you.

2) Set your hours, schedule lunch and morning tea breaks and try to retain your usual routine. If you ate lunch with a colleague each Tuesday or had coffee catch ups, do that virtually.

3) Develop a ritual for starting and ending each day. For instance, if you are working on your laptop at the kitchen table, place it on the table when you start and remove it when you finish. If possible, put it away where you can’t see it when you aren’t working.

4) At the end of each day, list what you achieved that day. You could also have an accountability partner whom you call each afternoon to let them know what tasks/activities you completed and vice versa. Also set your goals for the next day with them.

5) Be realistic about what can be achieved and adjust your goals and expectations taking into account that the environment may not be conducive to working as efficiently as you would like or that you may not have access to your usual resources.

Finally, be kind to yourself and others. Remember this will eventually pass!

Credit: a clever colleague of our Psychologist Aisa.