Yep. We are as over it as you are. A few weeks ago, Martin and I were excited as we thought it looked like we could ease some of the social distancing restrictions in the practice. We were both looking forward to working together on the same shift again and being able to see the other staff members we have had to keep separate to protect the practice.
Sadly, this has not turned out to be the case.
It goes without saying that I hoped never to refer to this blog post again. I never wanted members of our community to need a survival guide to another lock down, even less than I wanted to update it.
The good news though is that we know how to get through this, and even though it seems like this one is a little more stubborn, and we are all a bit more frustrated than last time and lets face it, wearing face masks all the time is uncomfortable and boring, it is important to remember that we are in fact all in this together and we WILL pull through sooner or later.
So without further ado , please feel free to refresh your memory of Align’s top 7 tips for surviving the lock down.
7 LOCK DOWN SURVIVAL TIPS
Recognise that it is OK to be sad/angry/frustrated at the current situation.
Even if you don’t think your concerns or issues rate highly on the scale of how disastrous your issues can be, they still can have a large effect on your life and are therefore valid reasons for you to feel bad.
To recognise that how you feel about it all is important and you need to deal with that, not just say “it could be worse”. It could be, almost always, but that doesn’t mean that you aren’t being affected now.
If you feel hard done by that the things you would normally be doing to feel like you aren’t happening at the moment, then you are allowed to be annoyed by that. Don’t carry stress around thinking that you help people by not complaining. You don’t, you just get more irritated. Recognise it’s OK to be mad and express it healthily, exercise vigorously or speak up if need be.
Exercise.
I know right? obvious and boring, but it’s more powerful than you realise and usually overlooked.
One of our clients recently told me that they have discovered that without commuting and the incidental exercise they used to do purely from working in the city in an office, they have gone from averaging 8000 steps a day to fewer than 800.
In times of stress, volume of exercise is frequently one of the first casualties. Ironically, It’s also one of our best natural stress managers and anti depressants.
Ever regretted exercise? Ever felt MORE stressed after exercise even when it was only a small amount of it? No. No one has. Our nervous system registers stress by putting us in fight or flight, or survival mode. Still living on the other side of exercise tells our brain that we have successfully overcome a stressful situation and therefore we don’t need to be in survival mode.
Take some time out.
I know what you’re thinking, easier said than done right? Where are you going to find time or space when locked in your house with your family to have some time off?
I get it, sounds like a classic “this guy doesn’t have any kids” thing to say, but I don’t mean try find 45 minutes to fully relax. We all have lives to live, work to do and/or people to look after.
What we are talking about here is finding even quick “mini breaks” throughout the day that allow you to reset for a second.
Meditation is a great way to help relieve stress (as well as lots of other benefits). If you're looking to use your self isolation time to up your meditation game we highly recommend the Oak and Smiling Mind apps. Both are free and excellent!
The Resilience Project has an app that is a daily well-being journal. This app is suitable for and has programs designed specifically for primary & secondary school students, as well as adults of all ages wanting to improve their mental well-being.
Alternatively if meditation isn’t your thing, you can replicate some of the same effects by listening to songs you find especially soothing. The research into this phenomenon used the songs ‘Strawberry swing’ by Cold play, and “Someone like you” by Adel. Feel free to mix it up and don’t be afraid to admit to yourself that ‘Only time’ by Enya is your relaxation jam.
Watch your posture.
Never underestimate the importance of posture. Just like how research has shown that trying to have confident posture has been shown to release testosterone in our body that increases our feelings of strength and confidence, the opposite is true.
There is a reason that if I ask you to do an impersonation of a stressed or anxious person you slump forward and hold your shoulders tight and up near your ears. It’s because universally, that’s what our body does under extreme or chronic stress.
This posture increases stress chemicals in our body and just happens to be replicated by sitting for long periods, especially if using a computer, a laptop, a tablet or our phones. Sound familiar during iso anyone?
Lie on a foam roller along your spine from your head to your backside with your arms at 4 and 7 o’clock. Then just LIE THERE. If you can only manage 2 minutes, that is better than none. If you’re comfortable or have time to, then 15 minutes is better again.
If you can’t get access to a longer foam roller or posture pole, then in a pinch you can roll up a few beach towels, but a roller is best.
This position has the added bonus of improving your body and spinal health by decreasing stress and strain on your body, especially you neck, head and upper back.
Improved posture can decrease headaches and risk of injury.
If you have more questions about this position, want a photo of your posture that we measure to know exactly where you are at or want more information about what improved posture can do for you, please do not hesitate to get in touch as Martin and I would both love to be there to help.
Get Adjusted.
This can also work towards your taking some time out, but do not neglect your health during this period.
Do not put up with ailments that make it even harder to get through the day. Or if there is some annoying issue that you have had for ages that you haven’t felt like you have had time to manage or keep injuring because of your daily routine, now that you’re out of your normal routine is the PERFECT time to get on top of it.
Don’t lose any momentum you had heading into this situation!
Tune out the news every now and then.
I know the temptation is to try stay up to date on every little bit of coronavirus news, but eventually it can become fatiguing. Every now and then avoid hearing about it or reading the new story on your newsfeed.
This goes hand in hand with having a time out, but I wanted to keep it separate as it is it’s own addiction to break. It doesn’t always help us to know the latest doom and gloom. It will still be there tomorrow.
Take the time you would spend on the news to have the time out I mentioned earlier.
Ask for help.
Speak up. Let people know how you are feeling. It is OK not to find this situation easy, I know I haven’t. Find someone you can have a vent to or speak to someone professional who can help you if you’re feeling like you need specific help.
It goes without saying this but obviously, check in on your friends and family. We don’t want people coming out of this in worse shape if it can be helped.
Remember that you are not alone in this. Although the lockdown and it’s effects are felt individually as all our circumstances are our own, we are all in this situation together. We will all understand where you are coming from and everyone wants to help everyone else get through it.