It’s okay if you’re not okay, we are in unprecedented times with this pandemic that has swept the world. I hear and feel the anxiety of others around me and with my coaching clients, things feel heavy, scary, and out of control.
I have to be honest, I worry what months of social distancing will do to our psyche and the long-term effects on our mental health. When I have to tell my 3 year old daughter that she can’t touch or hug her cousin, and that her beloved school is closed and I don’t know when she’ll go back. I wonder what that is doing to her. She might not remember all of the details of this but I believe these things may have a lasting impression on her.
I feel terrible for the people that live alone that are now in isolation without any human touch. I worry about the kids that have abusive parents that now have no way to escape it. My heart goes out to the families that have loved ones in the hospital that they can’t go see or worse their loved one dies alone. I worry about the long-term effects this pandemic will have on all of us.
The emotions that you’re feeling have been likened to the stages of grief and it can come in waves. This is not a time to try to stuff down or hide your feelings with food, alcohol, or other self-sabotaging behaviors and on the flip side of that is obsessive organizing to try to gain back some control. It’s okay to feel your feelings, sometimes the best thing we can do is to sit with them and let them move through us.
Although I am concerned, I also know that we are resilient. This is not the first time in history that we’ve been tested and have been through bad things, we will get through this. I wanted to share some things to help you get through this time and to help you feel your best.
What can you do?
Get out
Take a walk, enjoying some fresh air and a change of scenery will do wonders for your mind and your mood. Now that spring is finally coming I love to check in on my flowers that are just starting to bud. Maybe even take your feelings and frustration out on those weeds in your flower beds, get outside and enjoy fresh air as much as possible.
Have fun
They canceled hugs and touching but not fun! Don’t feel guilty for living your life and having as much fun as possible. What do you love to do? Listen to music, dance, play board games, take an online course, read, color or paint, have a water balloon fight with your kids, or turn your backyard into your own personal oasis.
Talk to someone
Find a life coach or therapist that you can talk to openly and without fear of judgement. A therapist can diagnose mental illness and prescribe medications. A life coach can help you decide how you want to feel, guide you to better feeling thoughts, and help you focus on what’s important to you. Life coaches have a lot of tools to help with mindfulness and dealing with anxiety.
Meditate
Our minds can sometimes be our own worst enemy allowing us to spiral with negative thoughts. If you could spend just a few minutes a day quieting your mind you will feel so much better and more in control of your thoughts and feelings. Try this 2 Minute Meditation that I recorded for those of you who are new to meditating, you can also try a guided meditation there are tons on YouTube.
Tap
Tapping on acupuncture points on the face and body can help you relieve anxiety, literally stopping an anxiety attack in its tracks, it also releases endorphins to help you feel better. You can find a video on tapping and how to do it here: How to Ease Stress and Anxiety with Tapping
Journal
Even if you aren’t a writer, grab some paper and write out your feelings. When you’re done, if it makes you feel better, tear the paper up into little pieces and throw it into the trash. Sometimes it helps to get all the yucky feelings and thoughts out allowing us to feel lighter and more clear.
Do something kind
What can you do and who can you help? Some ideas to help those in your community are to pick up groceries for an elderly neighbor, sew masks or drop off supplies for healthcare professionals, or drop off toys and creative activities for kids in need. It’s so important to help others and to continue building stronger communities, we are in this together.
I know as they are shutting down more things, like last week Virginia shut down our beaches and campgrounds, it’s easy to start to feel like the walls are closing in on us. There isn’t much in our control but we can control what we do in our own homes, we can decide how we want to feel, and how we want to live our lives during this time.
If you’ve been struggling please feel free to reach out to me in a comment or send me a message on my contact page.
Stay safe,
Kim