These 8 Little Things Can Help You Stay Mentally Healthy During Coronavirus

By Molly Brierley

While many of us are enjoying impromptu vacations, the thought of having 2 weeks of unoccupied time is actually pretty daunting. Not only do I love my job, but the structure, responsibility and place to go every day forces me to stay mentally healthy. Not having any commitments AND being encouraged to isolate inside, could paint disaster if I’m not careful.

In a time where physical illness is at the forefront of everyone’s concern, it’s hard to give yourself permission to worry about mental illness as well. If you’re someone like me who’s struggled with anxiety and depression and are worried, I see you. You’re not alone. I thought I would share some of the things I plan on doing to help myself stay mentally healthy:

1. Find some way to help: being of service to someone else, even if it’s just a text asking how they’re doing, is the quickest way to get yourself out of your own head and feeling purposeful.

2. Do the things you know you should: It’s hard to make yourself turn off Netflix when you don’t have to. I’m going to make myself read for 30 minutes a day, write for 30 minutes a day, and meditate for 10 minutes a day. I don’t care when or where as long as I do it.

3. Limit time on social media: I fell down a long rabbit hole last night on Facebook reading news articles about Coronavirus that did literally nothing but give me a headache. Sometimes you gotta be your own parent and limit that screen time, kids. Pay attention to this and put the phone away when it gets bad.

4. Make sure you shower every day: This sounds stupid to anyone who has never experienced depression but it’s SO easy to fall into a habit of staying in pajamas all day if you aren’t careful. Listen to music, take a bath, light candles, just get yourself in there. It makes all the difference.

5. Get outside: you can socially distance in fresh air, guys.

6. Eat healthy: I am on day 19 of Whole30 and I’ll be damned if this apocalypse gets in my way. Junk food makes you feel like shit, don’t do it (or at least do it in moderation).

7. Get your thoughts out: tell someone you trust, write it down, whatever. Just get your thoughts out of your head. I promise it helps.

8. And lastly, leaning on friends and family is really helpful when you’re feeling scared or overwhelmed. You’re not dumb and you’re not alone. So find your people, people. And if you don’t have any people, I’ll be your people. I love to talk and I have way too much time on my hands these days anyway.