Health in the Time of Coronavirus

Our team began to work remote to support employee health and promote the speedy recovery of our communities with social distancing.

For some of us, this was a big change. Our Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Adam Silverman, began posting tips for physical and mental well-being. The team found the tips helpful. We thought we’d share in hopes that they will help you, too.

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March 17, 11:57 AM—

Shelter-in-place wellness tip #1 from your friendly neighborhood Chief Medical Officer

When we thought of yesterday’s WFH event, it just seemed like a novel experiment to prepare for something more prolonged. Who knew that we would quickly find ourselves as a dispersed team for an indefinite period of time.

Sylla-pet (1 of ?) who is not in the least big unhappy about the whole WFH situation.

For some of you this may not be much of an issue, but for many of us, particularly those used to working in close quarters in Sunnyvale, this can be a bit more of a challenge. Mental health is as important as physical health, so in addition to eating well and sleeping well, maintaining a routine is very important. Routine is essential for mental wellness. During this time I would highly recommend the following:

1. Stick to a routine.
2. That means going to bed at the same time and waking up at the same time as you would normally. It also means that your bedroom should be just that…a place to sleep.
3. Get out of bed, don’t WFB (work from bed).
4. Eat regularly!
5. Set up a home office space that is distinct from the rest of your home. Work is done in that space, nowhere else. My back started hurting yesterday because I set up at the island in the kitchen, which has very poor ergonomics.
6. Get dressed! Staying in jammies is tempting, but it sends your brain the wrong message.
7. Shower, brush your teeth, comb your hair (or buff your dome!)! It may seem like silly but again, your brain is watching. [1] It is easy to become lazy about habits, including hygiene when you may be the only one in the vicinity.
8. Get outside, even if for a little while. Let the sun hit your face. Breathe fresh air. Vitamin D is essential for well being, and the sun will help with that.
9. Find some exercise routine. Go for a walk, do some yoga. Push ups, sit ups, picking stuff up and putting it down…this all helps you physically and mentally.
10. Check in on each other. If someone seems to be struggling, reach out!
11. Don’t forget to smile at yourself in the mirror! It may be the only person that smiles at you all day!

See you all on Teams! [2]

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[1] The ‘buff your dome’ suggestion is especially pertinent the Syllable team, nearly 25% of whom are proud bearers of domes that need buffing.

[2] We use Teams begrudgingly, but without the emojis to express our begrudging-ness.

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A lot has changed even just since March 17, huh? We hope you’re healthy and well. Thank you for reading — more tips to come!

Check out Syllable and how we’re helping hospitals respond to COVID-19.