Nottingham Post

It’s important to find coping mechanisms

- Kelly Pegg

LIFE right now feels tough, it feels dark, uncertain, scary and lacks a certain joy that we all look forward to around this time of year. Hallowe’en felt flat, the lead up to Christmas feels flat and none of us know what is going to happen next.

Livelihood­s are being impacted, mental health is being impacted, our general everyday happiness is being impacted and it’s all out of our control. As we head into Lockdown number 2 it’s perfectly normal to be feeling bewildered, low, frightened and anxious, you’re not alone, I certainly feel all of these things and a whole lot more!

It’s so easy to lose your get up and go in all of this, I mean let’s face it, it is always harder to find the positives than the negatives but with some help and pointers in the right direction we can all find some light at the end of this very dark tunnel.

We are busy mums, adapting to a global pandemic, to a new way of working, a new way of life. We are trying to protect our children, put food on the table and try and find something to make us smile too and at times it can feel impossible.

It’s so easy to let those feelings of “I’m not good enough” “I can’t cope” take over and before we know it we are feeling like a bad mum, a bad person and an all round inadequate human being when in actual fact we are amazing, resilient, super women who are doing a far greater job than we realise.

I’ve had lots of messages from mums to my Instagram account this week, all of who are finding this time really hard and I’ve instantly let them know that they are not alone. Right now we need to spread kindness and love to each other as if it’s going out of fashion and not get bogged down with difference­s of opinions.

Covid will divide people just as

Brexit did however what we need to do is unite and find common ground, share coping strategies and ideas for getting us through the emotional side of all this.

I watched in awe how my 7-year-old daughter is dealing with this after her swimming lessons, which she loves, were cancelled. She came home from school telling me all about how they are going to be doing gardening lessons instead and how she’s so excited to be outside. There was no moaning, just gratitude for a new opportunit­y and that’s such a lovely lesson for us all at this moment - to be grateful for the lovely things we have in our life and new possibilit­ies.

We can support our local businesses that need us now more than ever. There are so many incredible independen­t businesses across Nottingham and the county that we are blessed for choice and, of course, the gyms may be shutting but there is the alternativ­e of going online which is something I have done with the brilliant Nottingham Yoga Squad. It may feel lonely because we can’t see our friends and family so connecting with the right people virtually is essential for our mental health. Only follow people on social media who make you feel good, there are some great accounts there. One of my absolute favourites is the Author, Psychologi­st and Coach Suzy Reading.

We are hearing the phrase “We are in this together” a lot because it’s true we really are and remember it’s OK not to feel super positive and on top form right now. What’s important though is finding coping mechanisms to get you through it and creating small habits that will help make you feel a little lighter, and a littler happier each day.

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