The coronavirus pandemic continues to impact Canadians nationwide. The waves of uncertainty are leaving an impact on everyone in different ways. Compounding this stress, the long days spent indoors without social interaction can lead to negative thoughts and feelings. Without the proper care, this can create long-term harm to people’s mental health.
One way to improve your mood and well-being is by prioritizing your self-care. Self-care allows you to invest in your mind, body, and soul to feel your best.
Here are some ways to incorporate more self-care in your life:
Make Time for Yourself
With the hustle and bustle of daily life, it can be challenging to include space in your calendar for a little “me time”. It’s not always easy since many of us are preoccupied with the demands of our jobs, taking care of kids, and other routine life obligations. Yet, there are plenty of mental health benefits to prioritizing your needs and making time for yourself (even if it’s just for a few minutes!).
Ensure you have check-ins with yourself to see how you’re feeling and make practicing mindfulness a regular part of your daily routine. Try taking a relaxing bath, go on a walk alone, read a book before bed, or any other activity that you can do to recharge and connect with yourself.
Set Boundaries
News
Keeping tabs on the news can be a great way to stay informed, but it can also cause a lot of anxiety due to information overload about COVID-19. Take a break from news outlets and social media from time to time. They can cause undercurrents of stress without you even realizing it. Instead, set boundaries for how often you check the news and try limiting your intake to once a day. It's also important to only get your news from trusted sources who don’t rely on fearmongering.
Work from Home
For some people, work from home measures are in place indefinitely. The lines between your personal and professional life may be blurred during this time. The best way to keep strong boundaries is by trying to maintain a similar routine as to when you’re in the office. Ensure you set boundaries to limit overtime work, always take a lunch hour and other breaks throughout the day, and log off your work computer at your usual end of workday time.
Try a New Hobby or Reconnect with an Old One
If your social calendar isn’t as full as it usually is due to social distancing measures, you may have more free time. To stay entertained, try learning a new skill you always wanted to explore but normally wouldn’t have the time to. The challenges associated with mastering a new skill can be fulfilling and exciting. There are many free online learning resources where people teach you how to play an instrument, speak a language, or pick up almost any other skill you can think of. Experiment with different skills until you find the one that clicks for you.
Similarly, if you previously put a hobby on the backburner as a result of other priorities, then try reconnecting with it again. If the hobby brought you happiness before, it may be a source of happiness once more. Lean into more activities that bring positivity into your life. Whether it’s spending time on a skill or doing remote volunteering for an organization you care about. Click here to discover 3 ways to volunteer during a pandemic.
Stay Active
Not only is staying active good for physical health, but mood boosting endorphins are released when you exercise making you feel even better.
Do these activities independently or try socially distant activities with friends/family such as going for a bike ride, hiking, kayaking, and more. It may be challenging to find the motivation to get outside and get active but once you do, the fresh air will quickly make you feel better. Studies show that fitness outside can increase your well-being.
If you choose to increase activity indoors, there are many fitness studios and trainers offering free online sessions that you can take advantage of. Just roll out your mat, turn on your laptop, and get started!
Resources
For further support, visit the Government of Canada’s mental and physical health resource centre. There you will find more tips for taking care of yourself, more ways to get help, and provincial and territorial resources.
