Keep a schedule during social distancing

A good way to keep from losing your way during social distancing is to set up a schedule. By creating a routine you will make some sense of each day. You don’t need to plan out every minute of the day, but having an idea of what you need to do and when helps you stay on track while getting something accomplished.

Sleeping

Do your best to go to sleep and get up at the same time every day. That’s not always possible, but during this time of staying at home it’s a lot easier.

Try to get everyone in the family on board. After about a week or two of this, you probably won’t even have to set your alarm clock. Your body will adjust to sleeping on the schedule.

Schedule your meals

We are trying to go out as little as possible, so think about what your family might want to eat for the next week or even two weeks.  Keep a running grocery list of things you need.

Go through recipes and consider the ingredients you have when coming up with ideas. Try Cook Thing to input ingredients and come up with a recipe. This is great when you have some ingredient that you need to use quickly before it goes bad, but you can’t think of what to do with it or why you originally bought it. http://www.cookthing.com

Try to have meals at regular times or at least close to regular times. This is helpful especially if you have kids or if you are working from home.

Don’t forget to exercise

It seems like a lot of people are struggling with boredom, which leads to overeating. Getting some exercise every day is a good way to balance the overindulging with good health. Go for a walk. Wear a mask if that makes you feel more comfortable.

Lots of businesses have free online exercise classes for people with all levels of ability that are available during this social isolation period. Planet Fitness, Orange Theory, the Myerberg Senior Center and many others have free workout videos. 

Limit screen time

It’s very easy to lounge around and sit in front of the tv during the coronavirus isolation. Sure, you can watch tv, read blogs, look at social media sites and play online games. Just be careful to give yourself a limit for how much time you are spending doing those things each day. They are sedentary activities which are not great for you. Furthermore, you may become more stressed watching and reading about COVID-19. In a stressful situation, you don’t want to add to your anxiety.

Don’t feel guilty

Don’t worry if you are not in the mood to write the great novel, scrub every nook and cranny of your home or do something you said you never had time to do. This is an anxious time for everyone. Simply relaxing, meditating or doing yoga can be helpful to those stress levels. 

Assign yourself time each day to do nothing, read a trashy romance book or sit outside and watch the birds. It’s like a free space on a board game. Schedule time for nothing.

As we muddle through this new way of life, we have to figure out ways to make it work. Creating a routine is one way of making order out of a chaotic time. If you need help organizing your home, I can set up a time to do virtual organizing with you.