The COVID-19 pandemic is pushing everyone to the brink of insanity. Aside from the long amount of time being in lockdown, the intense restrictions and protocols in place are making it harder for people to move. While most are content with staying just at home, studies have shown that long isolation times cannot be good for everyone.
Isolation has deep consequences, including depression, insomnia, cognitive degeneration, and impaired immunity. Adding work to this isolation is enough to push someone over the edge. Some have claimed that working from home is no better than actually going to work even with the pandemic. Combine this circumstance with a toxic home life or a solitary apartment, and anyone can go crazy. Today, we discuss what steps we can take in order to keep our mental health in check while we burn our days through quarantine.
Avoiding Too Much Social Media
Top advice one can give to keep sane indoors while the pandemic ravages is to refrain from social media. One of the dangers of social media is that it causes the great fear of missing out. It is one of the reasons you check your phone every minute. Also, it can cause anxiety and fatigue. Although not the biggest factor in causing depression, studies have shown that social media fatigue is amplified in times of isolation. Focusing on something more important than Instagram, such as engaging in a new hobby, is great for your mental health.
Connect with Those Important to You
Connecting with your loved ones is vital to your sanity in a time when visitations are restricted for the elderly. Remembering to connect with them through available modern technology is not only beneficial for you; it is great for them as well. Try to remember that you are not alone in isolation. Millions of other people are also trapped inside their homes. Socializing, albeit limited to digital communications, is an integral part of being human.
Cleaning Up
Cleaning up and decluttering your work area and the rest of your home can promote a mind at peace. It is known that decluttering has a great impact on people’s mental health. Dirt and clutter clusters can distract us from our daily tasks. Minding our space and clearing the area helps with clearing the stressors in our heads as well.
Doing Basic House Repairs
In an effort to distract yourself with something productive, it is a great idea to repair the forgotten problems in your home. Most can be done by yourself. However, if the problem needs professional help, you should not hesitate to do so. Hiring a plumber for a plumbing job or a gardener to landscape your yard is a great way to plug in money back into the economy, especially if you have a spare budget to do it.
Keeping a Schedule
Keeping a schedule is essential for a clear mind. The pandemic has pushed most of us to start working from home. While most tasks can be done anytime, keeping a work schedule can help lessen the stress of work. Rather than working when you want to, maintaining a fixed schedule for work can help you separate work from rest. It’s easy to blur the line between work and rest at home when that’s all that you do.
Staying Physically Fit
Now that everybody is cooped up inside their homes, physical health is the last thing most of us have in our heads. It is highly advisable that we engage in exercise to recuperate for the lost physical movement we are used to getting when going to work. Not only does exercise keep us healthy, but it is also known to keep us away from depression and other known illnesses.
Learning a New Thing
Trying out a new hobby or learning a new thing is great to keep things interesting while inside your home. Since most people have the spare time to do other things than work, it is a good idea to engage in your long forgotten passions. Signing up for a digital class and studying for another vocation will help preoccupy your mind and steer you away from the stagnation of a work-from-home environment.
Most people take the situation in a negative light. Mental fatigue is real. But there are a million things that you can do to keep yourself preoccupied. Keeping a healthy mind is an absolute necessity in times of crisis. Let us consider taking the necessary steps to keep our minds healthy and active while we endure away through lockdowns and quarantines.
