Written by: Raven Jude Rosales, STEFTI Herald
Date: March 2020
When our linkage with friends and loved ones outside the confines of our homes is severed because of this pandemic, our sense of meaning might somehow be compromised. Stepping out would risk having fever, dry cough, and weariness so you opt to stay indoors. But staying in stirs up stress and anxiety putting your whole mental health in shambles. As the number of people afflicted with the disease drastically increases, so does the number of mental health-related issues. With that, here is a quick guide to surviving COVID-19 indoors.
Dedicate the extra time you have on physical fitness. In a time of a pandemic, while avoiding the spread of the disease from other people, you can first focus on self-development. Since school is over for the meantime, and you won’t be having your P.E. class, you can have your personal “Hataw moment” while blasting “It’s A Beautiful Life Remix” in your living room. Exercising would not only help improve your health, but it would also help in making you feel happier.
You can also have this time to improve your talents and explore hobbies that you want to learn, such as drawing, writing, or even cooking. Just make sure you don’t burn your house down while doing it.
Lack of human interaction would also be a leading factor to stress and anxiety. Quarantine at home would be fun if you spend it with your family. You can settle for family friendly games or even just sit on the couch with them and binge-watch your favorite Netflix shows and movies.
Stay connected with your friends, by tweeting how much you miss them, or reminiscing on funny moments, or even just chatting with them and checking on how they are. If it’s possible, you can even have a video chat with your barkada every now and then. Although seeing them in person is better than on the screen of your phone, know that this will be over soon and you’ll have more time to make new memories with them.
The most important thing of all is to take good care of your inner being. Spare some time to nurture your soul, like meditating and praying as your well-being also involves your mental, emotional, and spiritual states. Treat your home as if it’s a church, your mind a temple for peace and calmness. What’s happening around us might be hard to take in, and sometimes you feel like you are in a constant downward spiral. It is fine to feel helpless, because we all feel that way at times. But once you get to have a grasp of reality and slowly deal with it at your own pace, you’ll get by the sooner you know it. While you’re at it, help someone who feels the same way by giving your own guide in surviving indoors. In our own ways, we can help this fight against the Corona virus disease.
