I love true crime. I listen to true crime podcasts, watch shows like “Cold Case Files” and “Forensic Files,” and all the Netflix crime documentaries.
But during this pandemic, I hit my limit. My stress level became astronomical. I’m a single parent of 3 kids, and I’m working on my Master’s degree (which switched to distance learning, around the same time that my kids had to readjust to distance learning, too). My entire job changed on a dime when everything shut down, so I had to re-learn new technologies and strategies.
I realized that I couldn’t keep watching and listening to things that were about intense subjects. My wellness was suffering, so I had to start taking my self-care more seriously. I’ve written about self care before, and my journey with yoga. (Seriously, go do yoga). But I found that when I know I’m going to be having a stressful day (or year), I have to set myself up for success. So here’s what I started doing to step up my self-care game:
- Eat better. Less junk food, more real food. This means vegetables and fruit, and things that actually feed my body. As much as I love takeout, pizza, and tacos, they usually leave me feeling worse – and right now I can only take in things that leave me feeling better.
- Get some sleep. Go to bed at a reasonable hour. Take a melatonin if you have to. If I stay up until 1am and then get up at 6:30, I’m going to feel like garbage. This seems like common sense, but I can’t be the only one that stays up wayyyy too late for days on end until I can barely function.
- Move. Get up. Take a walk. Ride your bike. Go for a hike. Bring your family.
- Watch/listen to positive things. This is the biggest thing for me. The news is depressing. Social media is a dumpster fire. We *have* to take in good things, too. Good things are out there. I started listening to GoFundMe’s podcast “True Stories of Good People.” I cry at just about every episode. If you need a feelgood thing to listen to, this is it. I ugly cried while listening to an episode about a man that started a nonprofit that gives wheelchairs to dogs. There is good in the world, I promise.
- Meditate. I downloaded an app that helps me with daily meditations. There are tons of resources out there if you’re interested. I also recommend reading “Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics” by Dan Harris.
- Take a bubble bath.
- Make quiet time for yourself somehow. I read the Bible and journal – but do whatever resonates with you and grounds you. I like to do this in the morning before my house is overrun. My kids are ages 10-15 though, so I tend to get up before them now. If you have younger kiddos, this might need to be at naptime or after bedtime. Just get quiet time for yourself somehow – away from electronics, TV, and your phone.
- Do things that bring you joy. You don’t have to spend every spare second hustling, working, parenting, and cleaning. I’ve started doing paint by numbers kits, and even if they take me months to complete because I can only spare 30 minutes here and there to work on it, I love having a project to work on. I also am working on a cross-stitch project which I hope to complete before I turn 80. We are all busy – but I promise you, all those tasks will still be there. Make sure you devote time to doing things that bring you joy, too.
- Change up how you do social media. The “Snooze this person for 30 days” feature on Facebook is my new best friend, and I don’t feel guilty at all about it. You can also “unfollow” someone but remain friends with them. Don’t worry, they won’t be able to see that you’ve done this. Also – spend less time on social media. Spend more time doing numbers 1-8.
- Cut back on your alcohol intake. Another Rochester Mom contributor, Blair, wrote a great blog about this. If you need an alternative, make fruit smoothies. Or drink tea – hot or cold! The point is to only put things into your body that will contribute to your wellness.
We are living in crazy times. I’ve learned that I need to set myself up for success by surrounding myself with good things so I don’t go absolutely insane. If you have any good things you’ve been doing during this pandemic, drop them in the comments! I’d love to hear what you’re eating, reading, listening to, etc. too!
