BEATING THE PANDEMIC BLUES
Here we go again, with another year of COVID-19 well and truly amongst us. A different variant this time round, slightly different symptoms and lots of trying not to feel too glum about the current situation we all find ourselves in. It would be fair to say it’s difficult imagining a return to life as it once was, as it seemingly slips further away.
I’m not quite sure I remember what that life was actually like any more. As we clock up two years and enter our third year of the global pandemic, how much has your life shifted? If you had a baby or celebrated the arrival of a grandchild during those early days of the pandemic, that child will now be turning two. If you have constantly rescheduled family catch-ups, celebrations, milestones and now can’t be bothered to even re-imagine or plan another possible new date, you’re not alone.
We were to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary last year. Plans had changed so often by the time the actual day came around, with everyone in lockdown again, we almost forgot the day as it seemed like it was just another day at home. I have tried being resilient but there are moments, especially when friends and family, the most stoic of types, start to discuss how depressed and zapped of energy they are. When they say, “I’m just feeling flat today, and don’t feel like talking”, I realise how this pandemic has affected everyone.
With no immediate end in sight, all I feel I can do is listen. I’d normally try and cheer someone up but I have now found just taking the time to listen can be the best solution. Describing the loss of feelings and lack of joy each day, we somehow have lost that buzz of daily life and have become much more inward thinking.
I know my brain at times seems foggy and I’m more forgetful. Have you stared at a screen recently trying to remember that password you use all the time and then all of a sudden you just seem to forget? Or that phone number you always call and now can’t think of it at all, or even who you were going to call? In our feature ‘When Your Flame Dies’ by Janet Stone on page 46 we look at the symptoms of burnout and acknowledge that we are certainly not alone in how we are currently feeling.
The World Health Organization defined burnout in 2019 as an ‘occupational phenomenon’ resulting from chronic workplace stress. Yet as we know with the changes in working from home, new research shows that burnout is not restricted to those only in formal employment settings. This feature will hopefully make you think not only about your own life and the impact COVID-19 is having and how you are really feeling, but also how those around you are feeling. It provides some solutions and things to watch out for if you feel you are seriously suffering from burnout.
One thing I have returned to during this time is a daily sudoku. Years ago I could whip them out quickly with winning results. Then as I got busy I stopped doing them. The MiNDFOOD sudokus are at the back of each magazine on the matt paper stock, see page 136. I am gradually getting faster and better with fewer mistakes and it’s great having that daily ritual of a sudoku. Try it ... you might like it. I’ve realised I like having rituals like these in my lockdown life.
On page 45 we have five body hacks for a better frame of mind, which are all achievable and potentially could help lift your mood. It’s part of a broader feature about embodied cognition.
“JUST TAKING THE TIME TO LISTEN CAN BE THE BEST SOLUTION.”
* Smiling
* Singing
* Massage * Magnesium baths * Deep breathing
I think I can manage this list. They might seem obvious but as we look at the body-mind integration and embodied cognition, the idea is that the mind is not only connected to the body but that the body influences the mind, exploring how muscle movement can help counter anxiety and depression.
One thing you must remember: You are not alone. We are all feeling below par some days and sometimes, we’re just getting through the days the best we can. Try and get out for a walk within nature if you can, or just stand with bare feet in the grass, looking up to the sky with the sun on your face. It’s the smallest of things that at this time can have the biggest impact. It has helped me when I’m not having such a great day and given me the lift I needed.