Nurturing our Mental Health during the Coronavirus Crisis

It is very important that we keep our mental health in robust shape in these worrying times. So what are the best ways of ensuring this?

Create Routine

Creating a routine is essential, as the days will just speed by before you know it, leaving you feeling unproductive and frustrated. If you are home schooling children, then they will need a timetable to work to. Once you have this in place then you can create your routine around it. Remember it is important to factor in a number of breaks during the day and also it is good to have a treat as well to keep everyone motivated with something to look forward to.

Stop Panic Scrolling

Having the news on all day everyday, scrolling through Twitter or reading the more sensational media reports, is not going to help. Of course we need to stay informed and be aware of important government messages, but there is only a certain amount we need to listen too. Limit your time listening to the news to a couple of times a day, then switch it off and enjoy spending time with family.

Catching up on Chores

Use this time as a unique opportunity to clean and declutter and make the best of your home environment. The chances are that we are going to be in this situation for several months, so let’s get our home space in the best possible shape.

Setting Goals

One way of keeping motivated is to set goals. Try setting one each day. It doesn’t have to be anything earth shattering, but having a focus and then achieving the goal leads to a sense of control and purpose.

Keeping the Mind Active

My Grandma used to say that it was important to keep the mind active or else it will go atrophied. She was right and it is a great idea to set aside a part of your day to do one or more of the following: read, write, do crossword puzzles, sudokus, jigsaws, colouring or painting. All these will help to keep the grey matter stimulated and help to pass the time away.

Introduce New Practices that Support Mental Health

Grounding

I recommend a practice called grounding, this is a therapeutic technique that “grounds” or electrically reconnects you to the earth. Electrical charges from the earth can have positive effects on the body. The simplest way to be grounded is to go outside onto your lawn and place your bare feet or hands on the grass, notice everything around you, smells and sounds and breathe in the air. You only need to do this for a few minutes and then spend a minute analysing how you feel. The most noticeable effect people report from being grounded is that they ‘feel better’.  This has been described as a feeling of greater peace and calm within themselves and stress levels are reduced.  If there is pain present then often this is reduced or disappears completely.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the practice of purposely focusing your attention on the present moment and accepting it without judgment. It is an important tool in stress reduction and can increase overall happiness. The cultivation of mindfulness has roots in Buddhism, but most religions include some type of prayer or meditation technique that helps shift your thoughts away from your usual preoccupations toward an appreciation of the moment and a larger perspective on life. You don’t have to have any particular faith to practice it. I highly recommend Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now which gives you an excellent understanding of the practice.

Meditation

Meditation is a simple, fast way to reduce stress. It has been practiced for thousands of years and was originally meant to help deepen understanding of the sacred and mystical forces of life. Today it is commonly used for relaxation and stress reduction. Anyone can practice it and it is simple, inexpensive and it doesn't require any special equipment. You can practice it anywhere, whether you are out for a walk, riding the bus or waiting at the doctor's surgery.

During meditation, you focus your attention and eliminate the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. This process gives you a sense of calm, peace and balance that can benefit both your emotional well-being and your overall health and these benefits don't end when your meditation session is over. Practicing the techniques of meditation can help carry you more calmly through your day.

There are two Apps in particular that I would recommend if you want to start practicing meditation, Calm and Headspace. Both have free trial sessions enabling you to try both and see which suits you best.

The Morning Miracle

This is a great way of kick-starting your day as soon as you wake up. Allow two or three minutes for each of these exercises.

Exercise One - Silence

Find a quiet and comfortable place to sit, relax and start to breathe slowly and deeply. Focus on your breath and you will be present in the moment. This will allow you to calm your mind, relax your body and let all of your stress melt away, leaving you with a sense of peace, purpose, and direction.

Exercise Two - Affirmations

Search online and find some positive sayings that resonate with you, for example remanding you of your potential, purpose and priorities. There are several Apps that give you a daily Mantra for free. Read these affirmations out loud and as you focus on what is most important to you, your level of internal motivation increases. It can give you a feeling of confidence, purpose, and allow you to focus on the actions necessary to live the life you desire.

Exercise Three - Visualisation

Close your eyes and visualise your goals. What will it look and feel like when you reach them. Visualise the day going perfectly, see yourself enjoying your work, smiling and laughing with your family, or your significant other, and easily accomplishing all that you intend to get done on that day. You see what it will look like, you feel what it will feel like, and you experience the joy of what you will create.

Exercise Four - Gratitude Diary

Have a notebook and a nice pen by your side and take a minute to write down what you are grateful for, what you are proud of and the results you are committed to creating for that day. By doing this you put yourself in an empowered, inspired, and confident state of mind.

Exercise Five - Reading

Have a self-help book on the go and invest a few minutes reading it. You may learn a new idea which you can implement into your day or discover something new that you can use to feel better.

Exercise Six – Physical Activity

Stand up and spend a couple of minutes doing star jumps, push ups or burpees to get your heart rate up. You will feel energised, more alert and focussed.

Practice the Morning Miracle every day for two weeks and then reassess. If it is bearing fruit and making you more productive, calmer and more focussed then carry on.

Exercise

Regular exercise is essential to having robust mental health. It can ease feelings of anxiety and boost your sense of well-being. Endorphins are chemicals that are released during exercise and they result in a positive feeling in the body and help to elevate mood. Therefore it is important to factor exercise into your routine regularly. With the current confinement, we are being encouraged to take an hour of exercise a day. In normal times I would say to aim for two 50-minute workouts and two or three 30 minute workout sessions a week. If you are fairly new to exercise, it is very important to try a range of exercises to see which you enjoy the most. Some people like to swim, others a brisk walk, whereas a run is the exercise of choice for others. Then there are those who prefer to follow a structured class. There are so many options such as dance, yoga, Pilates or high intensity training. There are lots of Apps that you can chose from such as Les Mills, Jo Wicks or Yoga with Adrianne. Some even offer a free month’s trial. It is vital you find a form of exercise that you really enjoy, as you will be doing it regularly and there is nothing worse than dreading it. So take your time and find the form of exercise that you resonate with the most.

Sleep

Sleep is an undervalued tool in our armoury of stress busting measures. Both quality and quantity are important. An average of 8 hours a night of good sleep is the ideal. If you find it difficult to get to sleep, create a routine at night, such as a warm bath, a mug of hot milk and a good book. Avoiding looking at screens up to an hour before bedtime and make sure that you have no illumination in your bedroom. Make sure that your bedroom is cool. If your other half snores, then invest in some decent earplugs. Also if you get hot at night and your partner doesn’t, consider having separate duvets with different Tog ratings.

Banish the Booze

We are facing endless days ahead of us with limited routine. There is nothing to get up early for and the days can feel quite rudderless, so it could be tempting to start to open that bottle of wine earlier and earlier, particularly if you are homes schooling and entertaining energetic youngsters. You may think drinking alcohol helps you to relax and wind down and forget the ever present anxiety. However this isn’t the case, as by drinking too much alcohol you are just delaying the anxiety. Invariably alcohol disturbs sleep patterns as you end up waking in the night when stress and anxiety are amplified. The result is a poor night’s sleep and maybe a nasty headache the next day.

Instead opt to drink tonic water or green tea in the evening and a good night’s sleep will follow, and you will wake up the next morning feeling rejuvenated and your immune system will be thankful for it as well.

For those of us that are not ‘essential’ workers and are staying at home, it is important that we use this time to take stock and reflect on things. Ultimately in these kinds of situations we realise that our health and that of our loved-ones is paramount. So try to use this time in a positive way so that we make the best of the situation and once we can return to our ‘normal’ lives we do so without taking things for granted ever again.