7 Ways To Practice Self-Care During Social Distancing

As the world battles the coronavirus (Covid19) outbreak and how it will affect us. We’re also dealing with another battle: How to deal with isolation and quarantine.

Sitting at home at first seems like no big deal in the beginning. After all, it’s what some of us dream of. But staying inside can be difficult for the mental health of some.

Being isolated can increase the risk of depression, anxiety. There are studies that suggest isolation can be as damaging as heart disease, obesity, and even high blood pressure.

For now, isolation and quarantine is important for our wellbeing, which means we must look for other ways to take care of ourselves. Self-care is one of the most beneficial ways to not only take care of ourselves but for others around us as well.

What is self-care and why is it important?

By now we’ve all probably heard of self-care and how important it is to make apart of our lives. Maybe you’ve had a hard time finding the time, but now it’s more than just important. It’s essential.

An article written by Havard Health Blog gives a really great analogy:  If a plane is going down, you need to place a mask on yourself before helping others. It’s absolutely important that we find ways to care for ourselves, no matter how small.

In this article, we will discuss small but effective self-care tips for anyone. Even if you’re a busy mom. As we practice social distancing these self-care tips below allow you to stay safe and keep your mental health in shape.

Some of these steps may work better than other tips. It’s important to find what works best for you and remember progress, not perfection.

1. Nourish your body with healthy foods

Choosing to eat healthier foods can not only help to boost your mood but also helps increase fertility if you’re trying to conceive. High fiber foods, less meat, and healthier fats can help to increase fertility.

Lowering your intake of processed and processed sugars can also help if your goal is to conceive. An outline of The Fertility diet can be found here.

And you’re struggling with PCOS, there are changes you can make to your diet to increase your chances of fertility as well. Learn more about How the PCOS diet can increase fertility.

2. Exercise

Exercise is one of the best self-care practices. Even if it’s just a walk around your neighborhood or a video that you’re following along online. Exercising has many benefits.

• Improves brain health
• Improves your mood
• Reduces anxiety and depression
• Helps with managing weight
• Reduces risk of diabetes and heart disease
• Strengthens your bones

These are only a few benefits of exercising. Most importantly during a time like now improving your mood and reducing anxiety and depression alone is one of the best reasons to exercise. Whether it’s 5 minutes or 30, get your body moving.

3. Meditate

Meditation is exercise except for your mind. You can use meditation to help reduce anxiety, stress, and even help with depression.

Meditation can be done in many ways. You can find apps or videos that can guide you along if you find that focusing on your own is difficult.

Meditation is a great form of self-care and helps with your mental health.

4. Journaling

If meditation doesn’t seem like it’ll work for you, try journaling.

Journaling has been shown to boost your mood, reduce depression, improve memory, and helps to get clear on thoughts and feelings.

There’s no right or wrong way to practice journaling.  If freewriting is a struggle for you, try using writing prompts, you can find these online and they can help you if you feel stuck on what to write.

This is about self-care and it doesn’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to spend 30 minutes writing, as little as 5 minutes is just as beneficial.

5. Declutter

Decluttering is another way to help reduce anxiety, and improve your health by improving air quality. The act of decluttering helps your mental health by opening up space for new things and new opportunities.

Decluttering doesn’t have to be a big process during a time like this. You can take it day by day and pick one drawer, shelf, or closet you want to make an improvement to.

Once you’ve done this a couple of times a week you’ll see a huge difference in that space. Overall not only does decluttering help free up more space but helps you improve physically and mentally.

6. Be mindful of your social media use

During a time like this, being mindful of how you use social media is a form of self-care.

With constant coverage of coronavirus cases and other stressful news, it’s important to be mindful of where you spend time on social media.

Choosing to limit your time on certain apps, and where or who you choose to engage with can improve your mental health, which is so important for your self-care.

Finding websites like Stay Home Take Care that share daily activities and ways to practice self-care from the comfort of your home is another way to use social media in a positive way.

7. Get dressed

Getting dressed to sit inside sounds weird? It can actually be good for you. Slipping into something a bit nicer than your pajamas can help with feeling productive, and overall confidence.

Getting dressed helps to set the tone for your day and is an easy way to give you a sense of control over what’s happening to you.

Conclusion

The self-care tips above are not only food during social but should become a regular part of your life. Self-care helps boost your self-esteem, your mood, and overall outlook which important for many aspects of your life.