Taking Care of Yourself

Taking care of yourself

It is important right now to take care of your own physical and mental health.

Children are very perceptive, and they react to what they sense from the adults around them.

Here are some things you can do to help keep yourself healthy:

Connect with others – maintain relationships with people you care about through phone and video calls.

Exercise – take some time every day to exercise. You could go for a walk or run. You will also find many fitness videos online for everything from yoga to dance. Find something you enjoy and that makes you feel good.

Eat healthy meals – try to keep a well-balanced diet and drink enough water.

Get some sleep – being anxious or worried can have a big impact on your sleep. If you are struggling to get a good night’s sleep, try to develop a calming bedtime routine – for example, do 10 minutes of yoga or listen to calming music.

There are also apps you can download that provide guided meditation to help you get to sleep more quickly.

Turn off the news – it is important to keep up to date, but the 24-hour news cycle can make you more anxious. Limit your exposure to the news to only a small amount of time, just enough to know what the latest government guidance is.

Do things you enjoy – now that we are all spending more time at home, we can finally take up that hobby we have always meant to learn. Try baking, gardening, or learning to knit. These are also great activities we can share with our children.

Set goals – it is easy to lose track of the days in our current situation, so it can be helpful to set daily and weekly goals to give us a sense of control and purpose. Examples might be setting a goal of walking for half an hour at least 3 times this week or reading a new book.

Connect with the outdoors – depending on where you live, it may not be possible to spend time outside. If you do not have a garden or terrace, you can still open a window to let some fresh air and sunlight in. Put a comfortable chair by the window so you can look outside and get some air as you read a book.

Talk to someone – during this difficult time, sharing with family and friends how you are feeling and what you are doing to cope can be helpful for both you and them. There are also helplines you can call for support – we have included these (please see separate section).