Our lives have come to a screeching halt. COVID-19 has taken over. My trips to the grocery store and leisurely ventures to Target have turned into the most efficient store pickup or delivery options possible. My husband is an essential employee and must take many precautions when going to work. My son’s Montessori school closed and hasn’t figured out how to refund our tuition for the month. We’re all enduring the pains which accompany a rapid and constantly changing present.
While some of us are actually getting a much needed break, many are overwhelmed as a multitude of responsibilities are piling on us such as working from home while simultaneously home schooling our children. Amidst all the chaos and confusion we can have a spirit of calmness and peace with preparation. Being mindful of our wellness is vital as the way we live our lives changes before our very eyes.
What is Wellness?
Plainly put, wellness is the comprehensive absence of stress, strain and disease from our lives. It’s presents itself in our physical, mental and spiritual health. Stress is the core of most chronic conditions. It shows itself as we focus on the wrong things or allow the chaos in our lives to overwhelm our minds and emotions. The stress then manifests by morphing our hormones, creating inflammation, changing our body composition and ultimately creating disease. So how do we maintain a state of wellness during a time of such uncertainty? Here are some practical tips to get you there.
1. Avoid the Trap
A major trap we can fall into during times of crisis, especially one which involves the whole world, is constantly watching or reading new stories about it. It doesn’t take much time before we are in information overload and our anxieties are running high. This is especially true when the crisis is going to last for an extended amount of time. Take a break from the news. Stopping checking your phone every five minutes for the latest updates. It may be a good idea to limit your exposure to stressful information to once or twice a day.
2. Find Something to Do
Among the worst things we can do during a crisis is…well, nothing. Yes, we have to practice social distancing and yes many of us have been urged to stay home, but that doesn’t mean we need to sit on a couch and binge every show on our streaming apps. Be as active as possible. Rearrange the room you’ve been considering for the past two years. Clear out that basement or learn how to play that guitar. Start that exercise program you’ve been eyeing. Bottom line, don’t do nothing. Keep yourself active both physically and mentally. It will go a long way to feeling good and being balanced.
3. Be Reminded that You are Not Alone
One of the most important things we need to remind ourselves during events such as the ones we are living through today is to remember we’re not alone. Every person in the world during this global pandemic must endure the same anxieties and uncertainties. Stay in contact with those you care about. Maintain those positive emotional connections and make this crisis a shared experience. Join a new Facebook group with other women that share your same interests. Join an online book club. Tune in to Club Quarantine with DJ Nice on Instagram. There are so many ways to connect and share this experience with others.
4. Keep the Faith
How can we cope during this COVID-19 crisis? By trusting God. He is our hope. Our excessive doing is not necessary. Our excessive knowing is not necessary. Trust in His plan and the role we play in it. We don’t always see and understand why things happen the way they do, but always remember, God loves us.
Now is a good time to start a daily Bible plan. Are you anxious or worried? There are tons of scriptures on worry, meditate on those.
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. – 1 Peter 5:7
Most churches are now having online services weekly, tune in. Being spiritually fed is so important in a time like this.
5. Reflect and Come Out Better
Take this opportunity to restore balance in your life and reflect on how to not get burned out in the future. What things have you enjoyed about this time? A calendar free from ten thousand activities has been helpful. Not ripping and running from here to there has been nice. Maybe use this time to decide what activities are necessary for you and your children and which activities aren’t. Yes to martial arts, no to swimming. Yes to book club, no to moms group.
Maybe you have enjoyed working from home. After the quarantine, ask your boss if working from home is an option for two days out of the week.
We have a unique opportunity to restart our lives. Don’t go back to things are they were, evaluate what is worth going back to. Otherwise, we’ll be leaving a stressful situation, only to go back to the stress we once knew.
The goal is to come out of this better. To do that, we need to determine what was working and what wasn’t, what was aligning with our wellness and what was detrimental to it.
As you reflect and trust God, be encouraged. This time won’t last forever. Do your best as you homeschool and work and cook and cook some more. God has equipped us! God’s got us!
Do you have any advice you’d like to share with us on coping during this time? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know what’s working for you and maybe they can work for others.
