TNI Bureau: During these troubling times of having to deal with bad news almost every day, working from home, and hearing about the sudden increase in India’s Covid-19 cases, it is bound to take quite a drastic toll on your mental health. The constant fear of this pandemic has lead to an increase in the level of stress and anxiety among us. And stress is part of being human, which can be used to our advantage if we allow ourselves to learn how to deal with it. If you are also battling this never-ending cycle of stress, here are some tips on how to deal with it during this recent lockdown:
1. Maintain Physical Activity
Now that we have been asked to stay inside our houses once again, with the new ‘work from home’ culture still on the go, we must not lose touch with some form of movement. To start with, exercise can help improve sleep. And a better sleeping schedule definitely releases stress. Just take care not to exercise too close to bedtime, which disrupts sleep for some people.
2. Meditate
Meditating even for few minutes, on a daily basis, helps the mind to relax. It slows down the time from our busy schedule and allows the body to get in-sync with the brain and release the “happy” hormones, which the doctors call serotonin.
3. Stay Informed
It is important to stay updated with the latest Covid news, however try to limit searching about it every moment. And seek reliable sources instead of just relying on social media.
4. Look after your Mental Health
Take care of your mental health because what food is to your stomach, a good mental health is to your brain.
5. Stay Connected
Keep in touch with family and friends beyond the realm of social media, through audio/video calls and try to limit pandemic from dominating every conversation.
6. Explore New Things
If you find yourself getting panicked about doing the same tasks on a daily basis, try to explore your other interests, which could be anything, such as dancing, cooking, gardening, reading, knitting etc.
7. Avoid Procrastination
Procrastination can leave you feeling like you are backed-up in a corner, which can cause stress and induce negative thoughts in your mind. Try making a to-do list organized by priority and give yourself realistic deadlines.
8. Don’t Multitask
Try to not over work yourself in order to keep yourself busy. It is often seen that multitasking leads to extra exhaustion of both mind and body. Maintain a balance.
9. Slow Down
Give yourself breaks between every task that you do and try spending quality time with yourself, it will help relax your nerves and you won’t be irritable.
10. Seek Professional Help
If things constantly bother you or you feel unable to handle everything on your own, try taking professional help from a therapist. Talk about your problems, it is absolutely okay!