This special time of self-isolation is the time to focus on balancing your mind/body/spirit. When you balance your mind/body/spirit, you balance your life. Habits can be created now during this moment that is forcing you to stay home and, for most of us, not working.
As you focus on your mind, find ways to expand your knowledge. Learn a new hobby. Maybe there is a hobby that you have been procrastinating over learning or simply too busy to learn because you are too tired at the end of a busy day of working. Now is the time to take up that hobby! You will be able to fit it into your normal schedule once things get back to the way they used to be. Think of what you want to learn over the next few weeks.
Being in self-isolation is boring. Let’s face it. No matter how many shows we watch on Netflix, how many card or board games we play with the kids, or how many books we read, boredom is always creeping in. So is binge-eating. In a psychological effort to soothe and comfort, most of us are turning to comfort foods such as chips, cookies, etc. to fill our boredom and our cravings. I am curious as to how much weight on average people will be gaining over these 6 weeks or longer.
You can combat that inevitable fate by focusing on your body and making sure that you exercise every day for AT LEAST 30 minutes. The more intense you can exercise the better. It is good for your heart, good for your lungs, good for your blood pressure and good for your waistline. I think it is especially important to push the air out of your lungs that is trapped deep down in the bottom of your lungs. I also think it can be helpful to push out any toxins or viruses that may be trying to settle there. Every day when I exercise and my breathing becomes labored, that is when I focus on taking deep breaths in, I say to myself that I am inhaling clean, healing air and as I exhale I say to myself that I am pushing out all the toxic, stale air that has been trapped in my lungs.
Nurturing your spirit brings you back home where the peace really lies. Daily meditation, especially upon waking, is a great way to ground yourself and nurture your spirit. You can choose to focus on a repetitive noise or do a guided meditation. There are a number of good ones on YouTube. I love the Honest Guys. They are a professional guided meditation group and all of their guided meditations are wonderful. They have ones broken down by categories such as anxiety, positive thinking, sleep, etc. If you can dedicate at least 10 minutes a day to meditating before you start your day, it will give you an edge to combat the stress that comes later in the day. Starting the habit now during this self-isolation period will prepare you for when we get back to our normal lifestyles. Closing your day out with a meditation will help to bring you to a calm state and help you to sleep.
Now is the time to create positive habits that will be helpful in the future. This is a time for mindfulness, growth, and learning. Don’t look at it in a negative light. Choose to see the positive in this situation and you will come out on top!
