So here we are in week 3 for the UK having being told to stay home. I don’t like the terminology around this time “lockdown” and “quarantine” sound so much more worrying than stay at home. I know some people find the vocabulary rather anxiety-inducing and find the general panic quite difficult to deal with. So I thought I would put together from years of experience things that help me feel calm, grounded and purposeful.

I feel like I should mention my qualifications for this blog post. I have ME/CFS and have been mainly housebound if not sofa-bound for the last ten years and have had periods of not leaving the house for months.

1. Make. Some. Sort. Of. Routine. I aim to get up at the same time and go to bed at the same time. Try to eat regularly. This all gives your bodies clues as your normal routine would. It will help you feel more organised and structured.
2. You may have a huge list of the jobs you never seem to get round to in daily life but remember to pace yourself. This could be a marathon and not a sprint. Try and aim for one or two odd jobs a day if they are bigger projects one for the weekend. Pace yourself. Don’t fall into the productivity has to be insane mindset since we are at home.
3. Try meditations and breathing exercises if you feel overwhelmed. I am not massively into mediations but I do love a good breathing exercise. It helps your body slow your heart rate and slow your mind down a little. YouTube is a good resource or trusty Google if you prefer.
4. This doesn’t apply to everyone but remember to move once in a while, you don’t want to be able to see your butt print in your sofa by the time to country starts up again. Take a break and move go sit in your garden, go for a walk if you can. Remember to open your windows and allow as much light in as you can. Your environment matters and has an impact on your overall wellbeing.
5. Remember everything in life is a season. I know we didn’t see this one coming but remembering at some point all of this will pass sometimes helps me. I don’t find myself getting cabin fever but then my home has been my world for many a year so remember its a season and life will have been changed forever but normalcy will come back.
6. Cook good food if you can. Try out new recipes take the time to nourish yourself you can’t use the I have no time excuse now. Make that smoothie or that cookie recipe.
7. If you find yourself going stir crazy try a new hobby. Knitting to making candles and lip balm there is a kit out there for you. See what you enjoy and go with it.
8. This is my last snippet of advice. If you had the worst day and you didn’t get anything done. You felt mentally drained and upset be kind to yourself. This all takes a lot of energy and self-discipline and sometimes you have to let it go and be okay with the fact you got nothing done and you felt rubbish all day. Try to not add more pressure to your environment.

We can get through this and you are all doing great from people like me that haven’t had their day to life altered much to those who this is a new experience.

Until next week, Stay home, stay safe and thank goodness we have the NHS. Please tell me your advice about staying at home and what helps you cope with it all.