Tips for surviving a second lockdown

With England going into a second lockdown from Thursday I have I thought it would be a good time to think about how you could survive a second lockdown. The first lockdown was a new experience for everybody and I for one went into overdrive, enthusiastically setting lots of targets and making lists of things I was going to do. Well it didn’t it quite workout how I planned. My enthusiasm waned as the days turned weeks which turned to months. This time around I am going to use some of the lessons I used to make it a better experience. Here are my tips for surviving a second lockdown.
1 Keep to a routine. This pandemic and our response to it is disruptive to everyone’s way of life. So, some sense of normality and routine is vital to your wellbeing. Try to go to bed and get up at your normal time. Get enough sleep eating regularly and keeping hydrated will help to optimise your health. Children can be particularly sensitive to change so try and make their day structured with set ground rules and boundaries and make sure you stick to them.
2 Regular exercise and fresh air. Exercise is often the first thing to go when your daily routine is disrupted. Exercise not only keeps you physically well but is great way to de-stress and to protect your mental health. It does to be something fancy, it just needs to be something that’s well get your heart rate up, like walking up the stairs a few times. You could plan to do some high intensity interval training if you wanted to, based on what you have around your home. This time round the weather is colder and the nights the longer but getting outside will be even better for you. The plenty little things you can do outside in the garden if you’re lucky to have one. I am lucky because I have a dog and that makes me get out twice a day to take her for a walk.
3 Add a little bit of variety. You need to have a variety of things to do to help stave off the boredom, don’t just sit around watching box sets and daytime TV. Break up the day into blocks of different activities and environments. If it’s raining and miserable like it will be this time of the year it could well be difficult to get outside but maybe change the room, you are in. Try reading a book or doing some puzzles and quizzes. Now might be a time to try and learn the new language or take up a hobby, just put little things into the day that stop it being hours and hours of the same thing.
4 Healthy eating. Just like exercise when our routine is disrupted, or we get stressed healthy eating goes out through the window. People tend to snack on unhealthy and comfort foods in such situations. Try to eat regular meals, if you love snacking during the day choose healthy snacks like nuts or fruits. A bit of variety is the spice of life, so now might be the time too spend more time cooking preparing new and unusual dishes.
5 Social media/ news feeds. Try and limit yourself to checking up just twice times the day. Although it’s useful to stay informed it’s very easy when isolated to get obsessed by the news and this can have a detrimental effect on your mental health. If you’re looking for information about the current pandemic then use reliable sources of information like the NHS, gov.uk or Covid-19 by Zoe.
6 Help your neighbours. The elderly, unwell and immobile neighbours are going to be at a greater risk during this time. If you have the time just give him a call during the day to see how they are doing. Maybe when you are going to the shops for your essentials pop round and ask them if they need anything fetching. Many communities are offering setting up formal volunteering groups which you could get involved with.
7 Stay in touch with family and friends. During the last lockdown millions of people discovered new ways of staying connected, Zoom went nowhere to being even something your granny had heard of in a matter of days. So, although you can’t meet people outside your household, except for support bubbles there are plenty of ways to stay connected to your family and friends. Make sure you make time to connect with them.
8 Support your local community. Restaurants, pubs, and shops are going to take another big hit and without your support they’re going to struggle to stay afloat. If they offer home delivery service, click, and collect, takeaway why not treat yourself now again. Support your local community you’ll miss them when they gone if you don’t.
9 Look after your mental health. As I’ve already said having a routine, exercise and avoiding stressful social media and news, all help to safeguard your mental health. It is so understandable to be anxious currently especially with the uncertainty about the future, and the health your family and friends. If you are feeling as though you need help with your mental health get in touch with your local GP. They are gearing up to expect more calls like this because of the experience they gained during the last lockdown.
10 Relax. Give yourself time to have a break if you’re working from home try to keep your work in a separate place, so that you could walk away from it. Relax, I know that it’s going to be difficult particularly if you are working from home and have children supervising during the day. Most employers recognised that productivity went up for people who could work at home so maybe you don’t have to put in the same hours as you did before. So, give yourself a break don’t put yourself under too much pressure and relax.
I like to I just want to say that this is not my normal type of post but as I am concerned but the well being of people. I thought it would be appropriate at this time to help you get through this next lockdown. If having got some time for a bit of self reflection and you feel like you want to change your direction, then you can always get in touch with me. I help people to make a change in their careers. If you feel as though this article has been of value share it with others. Please also subscribe to my newsletter so that you don’t miss another blog post. Lots of love take care wash your hands where you mask and keep safe.

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