It is a strange moment we are all in now. And we are all in it together, remember?
From what we heard in the media, it is soon affecting our day to day life of millions of people. I guess it is a call for planet Earth to breathe, grow and heal. I guess it is a call for us to slow down, appreciate more little things, and spend our energy building quality relationships with our beloved ones.
This is my 3rd week in self-isolation and working from home. For a lot of us, it may be a struggle to be locked at home, and the only time you can go out is for exercise or to go grocery shopping. For many of us, we may be living alone and it may seem that the day is never-ending and the days are so lonely. For many of us, we don’t have the luxury of a balcony, terrace, a garden to have some space to walk around. For many of us, we are just stuck in a room with four walls and the only movement is to the bathroom, bed, and fridge.
Below are 5 tips for self-care activities you should be doing during quarantine for better self-love and self-development:
1) Put a routine
Working and staying at home can be very tricky, as you can easily wake up whenever and be in your PJs the whole day. In order to feel better and be productive, stick to a routine you created for yourself. Either as you would be going to work usually or tweak it with new activities. Wake up as you would go to work, use the time to get yourself ready, eat a healthy breakfast, or exercise before you jump to a computer.
Make sure to change your clothes so you feel fresh for the day. End your day as you would in the office, and make your extra time in the evening by doing something you enjoy. Take some regular 5 minutes breaks to stretch out or to make a cup of tea.
2) Take time to treat yourself
Now you have plenty of time for yourself so use it. Whether it is long baths, facial skincare, cooking healthy food, meditating, exercising, or learning a new skill you always wanted to do. Find something you enjoy doing yourself and love yourself. Order food in, purchase new items, get some fresh flowers, and so on. Treat yourself and make yourself happy.
3) Home detox
No more excuses to do some proper deep cleaning of your house. Time to categorize things you don’t need and can be given to charities or thrown. Now you will be spending days and weeks at home, so it is important to make your home and workplace as fresh as possible, so it can boost your energy and productivity. If possible, try to move your workspace around the house so you can change the environment and views.
4) Online social distancing is not prohibited
Even though you can’t meet your family and friends in person, your conversations should not stop because of quarantine. Apart from the usual social media app chats, there are plenty of others apps that are allowing for some online fun games between individuals or group calls. Companies are being creative in putting together virtual pub quiz games, games for kids online for parents who work, or making their meetings more fun and personal. Be creative, socialize on a daily basis, share knowledge, and tips, and support others, or do things virtually together.
5) Keep learning
There are plenty of online resources available to you. Whether it is Youtube, live stories from other people, or educational platforms, and many of these are free for all of us to use. Don’t stop your day by just working on what you have to do, Netflixing the whole night long, and eating whatever you want. Keep learning, educating yourself, and staying curious. Now it is a proper time to do so and no more excuses. If you don’t want to study alone by blocking some time off your day, you can join online with other people or friends to learn together. Even half an hour a day as a routine is more effective than an hour once in a while.
Fan of museums and galleries? Then apart from learning something new for yourself, you can learn by joining a virtual museum, art, and exhibition tours. It is not just learning for yourself, but learning about the world, the society, the environment, the economy we are in, and how things are changing and impacting due to Covid-19. Many businesses are changing their strategies and communications, to be part of the movement. Join virtual fitness, and cooking classes or shop virtually with shopping assistants.
It is pretty impressive actually how everyone is more creative and thinks outside of the box. Curious what will be the new norm.
We are all in it together and I am here for you to chat, listen and help each other in difficult situations like this. Drop me a message, or an email, and let’s connect! The bottom line, is if we don’t get out of quarantine with self-love, a new skill, or a side hustle, we haven’t utilized the given time well!
