Quarantine: Am I Doing this right?

COVID-19. Quarantine. Holiday season. The past several months have felt nothing short of a confusing mess that has left my mental health feeling all out of sorts. I have constantly felt as though I am not doing anything right. Should I have taken up a new hobby? Did I get enough exercise? Why wasn’t I more productive in quarantine? I asked myself these questions a few weeks ago and felt very disappointed in myself. But a good friend reminded me that we are in a completely new world with this pandemic. We are only supposed to be doing our best and sometimes our best is putting our two feet on the ground and getting through the day. In the beginning of quarantine I remember feeling extremely overwhelmed with anxiety and stress. Within weeks I was falling into a bad place mentally and I felt trapped. However, with the pandemic still being relatively new, I could see that celebrities, friends, family, and classmates were feeling similarly to myself. It felt as though we were all in the same boat and I could find several helpful resources if I needed it. But as time went on and restrictions loosened, it seemed like there were less resources and people to look to for help. Contrary to what I was hoping, the pandemic did not just end once summer started. Yet, many people went about their lives in a relatively normal manner and soon I was feeling my mental health start to decline again.

With the first semester back at school since COVID-19 coming to a close and the cold weather and holiday season approaching, the uncomfortable feeling of the unknown has resurfaced. How much worse will the pandemic get this winter? What if someone I know gets the virus? School was weird and different but at least I got to stay on campus, how will being at home in lockdown again feel? There are questions upon questions that flooded my mind, and my guess is that similar fears and questions flooded your mind as well. Something that I have come to realize in these past few weeks of preparing for the holidays and getting used to my new normal is that there is a lot that is out of my control and that’s okay. Things that were normal in March are different from what is normal during the school year which will be different from what is normal this winter break. Will I still get anxious at times? Yes. But learning to accept that I do not have control over this constantly changing world we are living in right now has helped me tremendously. It’s easier said than done - believe me - but taking it day by day is a great strategy. Normally I am a huge planner but I have struggled with motivation and organization in the past few months. So, instead I plan my time only a week in advance because it’s less daunting that way. My week doesn't go as planned? I adjust. I accept the discomfort and move forward. I have also been using the Lyftly to create a routine for myself so that I feel like I have some stability in my life. I journal every day because I need the outlet for my thoughts. And by every day I really mean most days. And sometimes most days turns into once a week. My struggle with sticking to a routine is valid and I am working on it. It’s okay to be struggling. It’s okay to feel lost. Your emotions are valid. You can’t fix all the problems at once. Recognizing these things and truly believing them can be difficult but making tiny efforts like writing in a journal one day or following a nightly routine can be incredibly helpful :)