Why self-care is always needed and during uncertainty

29th March 2020Afrowoman1Blog, Thrive & Strive0

While we’re all getting to grips with the uncertainty created by Corona Virus, self-care is again being talked about. The fear and worry we’re all experiencing is something we’ve never seen before.

We’ve gone from being able to go wherever we want at anytime to now having to self-distance or isolate. Washing our hands and trying not to catch this virus to prevent the spread is so important for society as a whole.

Like alot of other people, I’m having to become accustomed to being at home alot more. Whether that’s working from home or avoiding crowds. But while we settle into new routines, the news reports can undermine our best efforts to take care of ourselves.

We can spend our lives saying nice things to other people but speaking to ourselves negatively. We should always practice positive self-talk. Especially during difficult times it’s necessary to think about how you speak to yourself.

I recently wrote about the 10 Things a Black Woman must do for her wellbeing. This Blog is closely related to that topic too. But for me it’s about having that checklist to help us do all we can to manage the stress and we’re feeling right now.

My checklist for dealing with this time of uncertainty

I created a checklist for myself and I’m sharing here the thing’s I’m doing and/or trying to do more of:

Getting that decent, quality sleep. Right now it seems impossible to sleep well. The stress and anxiety being caused by Corona Virus and the related problems (potentially losing our jobs, buying food etc) is adding unnecessary stress. This stress is creating more sleep problems than ever. There’s plenty of information available to help you improve your sleep. Books, apps, articles advising on the best food to eat to help with sleep.

Eating nourishing and vitamin enriched foods. This isn’t about saying you can never enjoy a slice of cake or a chocolate bar. But whenever possible eat your vegetables, fruit and drink water. Aim to include as much of these nourishing foods in your diet as much as possible.

Exercise and fresh air. Going out to get air is good for us, but with the self-isolation and social distancing guidance, it’s advisable to go out or congregate with others as little as possible. When it come to exercise, you can exercise in your living room. There are so many apps, videos online, advice available on different types of workouts. Don’t forget that doing exercise helps with your circulation for your skin and scalp. So exercise encourages your hair to grow too. I like doing HiiT workouts but recently started doing more yoga. I’ve been finding this a good distraction from the news reports and it’s helping to stop me sitting in front the tv in a blind panic. Namaste!

I am blessed – I am provided for – I am safe

Using the time to support you during uncertainty

Find something to be grateful for. I know when things aren’t going well it’s hard to be thankful. I struggle with this but everytime I replace anger and irritation with being thankful, I find it easier to get through a tough situation. No it doesn’t make the problem magically disappear. The perspective brings clarity – which helps me to cope better and even find solutions. Some use mediation, positive thinking and affirmations. I give my thanks to God and knowing I’m not alone but a higher power is taking care of me gives me a way to manage stress.

Managing your self-talk. We have more conversations with ourselves than anyone else. We can spend our lives saying nice things to other people but speaking to ourselves negatively. We should always practice positive self-talk. But especially during difficult times it’s necessary to think about how you speak to yourself. Congratulating yourself on making healthy eating habits or not giving yourself a hard time for not having the ‘perfect’ figure are examples on where we can start.

If the difficult situation in making you fearful, practice saying some things to manage the fear. If you’re afraid of not being able to buy all the food you want, you could say:

I am blessed – I am provided for – I am safe

For me, this provides a sense of feeling supported and that there is plenty of all you need available. So there is no need to panic buy or internalise more stress.

Keep some routines in place. Working from home, self-isolating or distancing has thrown a real curve ball for me into how we can have a ‘normal’ day. I think that if we’re working from home, trying to manage our children and chores, we can feel out of control. While keeping a routine can help to keep us sane. For me this is making sure I still have breakfast, lunch, dinner at same times and going for walks. By keeping these things in place I feel as if my days still have some structure.

We don’t know when this crisis will end so having a routine and structure to your day are a good way to keep going during this tough time.