How to Stay Sane During a Pandemic
3 useful tactics for getting through unusual times
DISCLAIMER: I am not a psychologist, physician, or a mental health professional, nor do I claim to be one. The following article expresses my personal opinions and should not substitute any mental health-related action whatsoever. If you suffer from mental health-related disorders, always consult a mental health professional before committing to any undertakings.
As I am writing this — the world is going through some strange times. Police brutality and riots in the U.S., a looming recession, mass unemployment, worsening relationships everywhere in the world, and of course, COVID-19. There seems to be an abundance of chaos and pain. Even for a bad year — 2020 seems to take the prize.
COVID-19 has been incredibly difficult for people all around the world. In a short amount of time, the pandemic has forced us to adapt to new circumstances. Most of us have been quarantined at home since March, trying to make sense of all the things happening around us.
I followed the news closely when the first COVID-19 cases struck Sweden. First, it was eleven cases; then, that number doubled, it doubled again, and all of a sudden, there were thousands of death cases related to COVID-19. I observed how companies and public institutions put tighter restrictions on health and safety until they eventually ordered staff, students, and employees to work from home.
After a couple of months in quarantine, the reported COVID-19 cases and the death rates have slowly declined. However, in exchange for physical health, self-quarantine has brought up the numbers for suicides, drug abuse, and domestic violence.
During self-isolation, the topic of mental health has not been in focus as much as the physical harms brought by the pandemic. It may be understandable, but not to be forgotten as it has shown severe consequences for the general population.
The quarantine has forced people to be away from family and friends; companies have laid-off dozens of people, and unemployment has been wide-spread. Also, the strain of working from home has erased the boundaries from work and personal time, causing people to be stressed and overworked.
For me, I just finished going through one of the toughest coding bootcamps in the world when the quarantine began. I was pretty tired and kind of grateful that we would be able to work from home.” Perfect,” I thought to myself as I would have more time to accomplish all the side-projects I’ve been putting on hold. However, this was easier said than done.
As the days went by, the tasks I had decided to do stayed undone. I started to feel more isolated and mentally exhausted, even though I was essentially not doing any mentally challenging work. I soon realized that the uncertainty of not knowing when the quarantine would end was the origin of the mental exhaustion. The days suddenly lost its normal structure.
Therefore, after a month in quarantine, I decided to actively take control of the parts in my life that I could control. The following tactics are approaches that I started using, which hopefully might help you as well.
Make a Routine and Stick to It
“A body at motion stays in motion; a body at rest stays at rest.” — Isaac Newton
The first thing I lacked was routine. Immediately after finishing the coding boot camp, I decided to slow down a bit. However, I realized that I started to lose momentum with each day. So I started writing down a daily to-do-list. The to-do list’s focused on one thing concerning health, wealth, and happiness every day. The tasks do not need to be overly ambitious; the most crucial aspect is staying consistent.
So it could look like this:
Health
Wake up at 6 AM and immediately take a 30 minutes promenade to the outdoor gym. Do a light workout routine.
The focus here is on my physical health. Being quarantined means that I am home more than usual and thus getting used to a more sedentary lifestyle.
Also, there’s a correlation between good physical health and good mental health. I’ve noticed that I usually become more anxious, prone to negative thoughts, and easily irritable when I have not been working out. It is important to note that it does not have to be a heavy nor a long session. As my wise friend once said: “The best workout session is the one that happens.”
Wealth
Set aside time to work on side projects such as a website portfolio, follow a tutorial for React Native, read a book about entrepreneurship, and so on.
The focus here is to move the needle in your life forward. We all have our personal goals and ideas, and there is no better time than now to take up those side projects. Sometimes it can feel quite overwhelming to look at the end goal and see it being miles away. However, by breaking down your goals day-by-day, you are forced to zoom in on the task at hand. If you have the end goal in sight, you have to trust the process getting you there.
Happiness
Learn a new song on the guitar, watch five episodes of a series on Netflix. Play some video games or maybe eat your favorite ice cream, and so on.
While it is essential to care for your health and wealth, it is equally important to relax. We live in unusual times, and everyone, including you, is trying to get by the best they can. Cut yourself some slack from time to time. Remember, improving yourself is not a sprint; it is a marathon.
Reach out to family and friends
I live in a different city than my family and most of my friends. During quarantine, I became relatively isolated from them as I did not have the means of visiting them directly. Therefore, I made an effort to call and message my family and friends more than usual. To not only feel less alone but also to check in on them.
Having a robust social network is part of staying mentally healthy. Especially during a pandemic, when you are uncertain about anything and everything, you want to be there for each other.
Even if you might be going through the pandemic with an air of easiness, the same might not be true for everyone. And if you are not — even more of a reason to connect and reach out to the people closest to you.
Start Writing Down Your Thoughts
Being alone for a longer time than usual allowed me to think more. I started thinking about my current circumstances, my future, and my goals.
I’ve learned that the best way to process your thoughts is to write them down. Writing is thinking on paper. Things that might’ve been murky and unclear in your mind suddenly becomes more apparent once you’ve written them down. It is particularly important to do so during these times when we might be more alone with our thoughts than usual.
When you write down your thoughts, you start to see them for what they are. You let your rational mind analyze the emotions and feelings of your monkey mind. Most of the time, you come to realize that the things you are afraid of are either irrational or that they can be prevented or, at the worst, fixed.
“We suffer more in imagination than in reality” — Seneca
Final Words
As of now, it is still unclear whenever we will go back to normal. If ever. I’ve decided to take each day as it comes. It is impossible to think too far ahead as we have no idea when the pandemic’s effects cease to be. In Sweden, a lot of companies have started resuming their business operations. But even so, there’s a general feeling of unease in the air. Who knows if that will ever end.
For me, this quarantine has taught me a lot about myself, my values, and my goals. I’ve genuinely come to understand the importance of family and friends. When the future is not certain, the best we can do is appreciate and be grateful for the people around you.
When it comes to my goals, I’ve come to understand the importance of being self-sufficient. My goals towards living by my means and not dependent on other people have become more evident.
I am aware that the road there might take many years and full of twists and turns. Still, having so many other successful and encouraging people around me is keeping me hopeful and engaged.
This pandemic has been an ordeal on so many levels. But — it will not break us, that is for sure.
Take care out there, and thank you for reading!
