​Hey guys! Long time no talk. We’ve all been experiencing a whirlwind of emotions, current events, and not-so-swift societal changes for a longer duration of time than one might prefer.

 

Since March 13th-ish, I’ve been working full-time remotely from home alongside (virtually) many of you. Though I am considered one of the lucky ones as my financial stability has not been compromised from the global health crisis. I hesitate to say we are in this together because the reality is that current events have impacted each individual in wildly different ways. While yes, we are all experiencing the global pandemic together, and trying to work together to protect each other and our families, the personal impacts and perspectives are broad to say the least. My deepest gratitude and best wishes are sent to you all during this time. Thank you for your sacrifice. Thank you for your kindness. Thank you for your thoughtfulness as we navigate a new world together.

Current events have stirred up a lot of uncomfortable feelings – anger, frustration, fear, and anxiety – to name the most unpleasant ones. I feel a change coming (but I don’t know if the outcome will be good or bad). To quote the world renowned author, an Indian political activist Arundhati Roy:

Unfortunately, I’m no psychologist or therapist. I don’t have the answers to the world’s problems but, I am managing to survive and have a few hobbies I have found to be a little therapeutic for me and would like to share, just in case anyone needs that extra boost to provide more meaning to their daily ritual while coping with a global pandemic. Let me stress these are things I’ve personally found to be enjoyable or helpful and may not be for everyone! Plus there is still a chance that these hobbies are just manifestations of a nervous breakdown like Ben Wyatt in the show Parks and Rec when he loses his job and invents Cones of Dunshire, an extremely involved nerdy board game (no offense) and also tries his hand at claymation movies and loses it when he realizes he spent like a month on 3 seconds worth of his movie.

​1. I’d hate to be *that girl* but ummm, it really is a game changer and I encourage anyone to at least try it. I’m talking about yoga! I know – it feels like everyone suggests yoga for every ailment these days! But it really does help balance you mentally through self discipline and learning to tune into *what your body wants*. Yoga isn’t about being crazy flexible and balancing in weird positions. I mean it can be if that’s what you want but yoga practice is all about ~what feels good~. Everything else comes next.

 

I really enjoy the free YouTube videos Yoga with Adriene (and Benji!). I’ve linked her here. She offers hundreds of videos varying in length, difficulty, and theme. Her themes can be general like learning the basics to yoga or it can be more specific like hip and joint targeted practices, back pain, anxiety, even kids yoga! I like going to her playlists because she has them divided up by length. If I’m feeling like a shorter, deeper yoga practice, I peruse her 20-30 minute videos. If I want something more rigorous or perhaps more variety, I peruse the 30-45 minute playlist.

Plus side: she has a super cute doggo that is in almost every video and she has beautiful house plants, haha. I also personally find her to be a personable and relatable human being.

It’s easy to do at home and only requires your ~self~ and a yoga mat or blanket.

 

2. I got a plant. Lol. It was a $3 grow kit at the front clearance section of Target. It was an Impatiens kit and came with everything but water to grow them. I got it right before everything started closing down and wanted to start growing it in my new office here but just a few weeks later, we were sent home. I decided to grow it at home even though my cats have killed pretty much every indoor plant I’ve ever had and any prior roommates’ plants (sorry about that).

 

I managed to perch the small pot directly onto the window latch, high enough where the cats couldn’t reach. It grew over the next month and then the next and it just looked like weeds. I transferred them over into a bigger pot and put little pieces of vegetable and fruit scrap in the soil to promote fertilization in time. They began to bloom about a month ago and I just transferred them over into another bigger pot and this time I added a food spike.

Maybe it sounds super lame but I’ve enjoyed taking care of the little plant, making sure it gets enough sunlight but not too much, watering it when it needs it, and encouraging growth and blooms. It’s been a delightful experience and I was so happy when I saw the little flower buds and their unique colors! I added a few friends with time. I can’t do anything too luxurious since I’m in a smaller apartment now but I have sunlight driven plants lining our front porch and that brings me enough joy for now.

Anyway, I know a lot of us have already invested time into plant care during quarantine so I know I’m not alone!

3. Whatever that means to you. It can be yoga, running, swimming, walking, biking, etc. I encourage avoiding gyms if you can for public health and safety (that includes protecting you! ️). Besides it’s so beautiful out! I like to bring my mask and have it around my neck and I choose routes that I know will not be heavy with pedestrian traffic. I wear the mask when I approach others. Some days if it’s cooler out, I can wear the mask for my entire exercise without any issues and I find that easier; it’s a little less to worry about running into someone without being prepared. I know this can be awkward to picture for some but, it truly is effective as we see up here in the northeast (and in contrast to what is happening in the south) and what we see over in Europe, China, and throughout Asia. Wear a mask if you can during your daily exercise if it’s outdoors and in public, for just a little while longer!

4. Encourage a normal week schedule. Humans are creatures of habit and to an extent, we thrive in environments that have structure and purpose. Working remotely from home was a huge adjustment. At first it was kinda nice, felt convenient, easier. But then I started to abuse all of this time I was now spending at home. I started sleeping in all of the time, getting distracted by the pets or TV instead of working, cooking or cleaning instead of working, or calling family and talking about the pandemic instead of working (lol). And then I’d go through bouts where I would just work. Constantly. My work is all right there at my desk three feet away from where I sleep. It began to be all I thought about. ​

 

​It cycled through like that. Lacking motivation and then either feeling behind or feeling energized and compensated by working a lot – sometimes at the sacrifice of physical activity. So I find encouraging an as-normal-as-possible daily routine can be crucial. I like to run in the mornings Monday through Thursday and begin work around 9:30am. Just having that one part of my schedule defined really helps layout the rest of what needs to be done. I’m also a big list person (as you’ll see here) which helps, too.

5. Find something you enjoy and find something that provides an outlet for you. This can be the same thing, if it so happens to be. For me, that is running. For you it could be reading or writing or cooking. This is up to you but it’s something I highly suggest checking in on regularly. “Have I been doing things I enjoy?” and “Have I been able to process this new life properly?“. Idk, the questions don’t have to be that philosophical, I’m just saying to check in with yourself every now and then and make sure you are dealing with new adjustments okay and if you’re not, consider what might help you do that and speak it aloud, maybe to someone that can help will it into existence with you.

 

Lastly, try to remember to shut off Netflix, shut off Tiktok, and spend time outside safely, maybe even sniff the crap out of your face covering so you can get a small whiff of those blossoming trees outside. ​​