5 Best Tips to Stay Sane During The Quarantine
Everyone in the world right now is painfully aware of the global pandemic taking place. You’ve seen it everywhere: news, social media, websites, and even in the mail (we actually got a postcard from the US government yesterday). Now more than ever, we might need a little help to stay sane during the quarantine.
For many of us, this means schools are closed (leaving kids at home to try to do distance-education for the first time, oy) along with non-essential businesses. We aren’t to leave the house for anything but essentials, and when we do leave it’s basically at our own risk.
Most families are sending only one member out of the house to do necessary shopping to help reduce the risk of contracting Covid 19. That means some of us are perhaps starting to get a little stir-crazy.
With all this at-home togetherness and media overload, I’m starting to get a little bit overwhelmed. I know I’m not alone, so I want to share with you 5 tips for staying sane during the quarantine.
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What is a quarantine?
- According to Wikipedia, a quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests.
- Quarantines are used to keep people from venturing out and potentially spreading disease, like Covid 19. Currently, many states in the US have imposed quarantines to help curb the spread of the illness and prevent needless deaths.
Why are people starting to get stir crazy?
- Humans are social creatures by nature. More importantly though, is that Americans are used to a very busy, very active lifestyle. People simply live fast-paced lives with packed schedules and little downtime.
- For example, parents today are often saddled with travel sports league schedules for their children. Practices multiple times per week, games on the weekends, and other time commitments are the norm. The glorification of busyness is an absolute staple in our culture.
- This quarantine has forced most families to slow down dramatically. Families are spending a lot more time together at their homes instead of in the car racing to and from the ballpark.
- SOme families are dealing with food insecurity and financial loss due to mandated shutdowns. A lot of furloughed workers are anxious to return to work or reopen their small businesses to support their families.
- Distance learning for public school kiddos is adding an additional element of difficulty to parents working from home. The learning curve for navigating this new normal is steep for many families.
- Even though we are a homeschool family, we are still active in our community. Our co-op is unable to meet each week, and our weekly trips to the playground and library are on hiatus right now. Even reclusive people like us are feeling the differences of quarantine life.
- Because of all these factors, many families are feeling a little bit stir crazy. It’s been a month of quarantine here in Ohio, and a stressful month at that.
5 Best Tips to Stay Sane During The Quarantine
Tip 1: Establish a household routine.
- Having a routine instills a feeling of security for children and adults.
- A routine is a series of things to expect throughout the day. Times are flexible and can change to meet the daily needs of the family.
- Start with feeding times and work from there. You can see a sample of our weekday household routine here.
Tip 2: Get dressed every day.
- Lots of sage mommas out there will tell you they’re far more productive when they get up and get dressed for the day.
- Some even tell you to put on “house shoes” to help boost productivity.
- PJ pants are great, but at least switch into some daytime leisure wear, hello yoga pants, to help you feel like you’re up and starting your day.
Tip 3: Get outside if weather permits.
- Getting outside for fresh air is an absolute necessity for our family while we’re under quarantine. A quick walk or bike ride around the block (while maintaining social distancing guidelines) is a great way to exercise your body and fuel up your spirit.
- A change of scenery is great, too! Heading for a walk at a local nature preserve or Metropark is considered safe as long as social distancing guidelines are followed.
- If you have a yard, get out there and kick a ball with your kids. Throw around the baseball or softball. Color inspiring messages on your sidewalk with some sidewalk chalk. Move your body!
- If you can’t get outside, throw on a Youtube workout or utilize one of the other free resources right now to get some exercise.
“Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.” — Elle Woods, Legally Blonde
Tip 4: Have realistic expectations.
- Now is the time to lower your expectations for yourself and those in your home. I know this is an odd concept, but hear me out.
- Everyone is going through a lot of big emotions right now. Kids and adults alike are facing new challenges, fear, and grief.
- Not everyone is expertly equipped to deal with all that is happening in our world right now. That is okay! We just have to remember to show grace to one another and be kind.
- Example: If you really want to craft but are out of supplies, then you’re probably going to feel disappointed. Just because we have time to do lots of things right now doesn’t mean we are able. Don’t beat yourself up if you find yourself bingeing a Netflix docuseries instead of organizing your coat closet. Everyone copes differently.
Tip 5: Practice gratitude.
- This could be tough for some people right now, and that’s okay.
- Think about five things you’re grateful for each day.
- At dinner time, each person in the family shares one thing they’re grateful for that day.
- An attitude of gratitude will help everyone in the house focus on the positive things happening at home right now.
- Gratitude is a helpful life skill to model for our children.
- Start a gratitude journal with your children and jot down everyone’s idea each day. This could be a great way to look back on this time and reflect once we are out of this jungle of uncertainty.
So, even though everything feels weird and uncertain right now, there are ways to help you stay sane during the quarantine.
Pick one tip each day, or follow all the tips every day. Whatever you can pull from this list that helps you right now makes my heart happy!
What tips do you have to help other families stay sane during the quarantine?
Click here to submit your own tip
You can find more information about the global pandemic at CDC’s website.
