For those of us that suffer from high functioning anxiety or depression, these times of being forced to work from home can be a struggle. Even worse when our other usual outlets have also been restricted. I know that a lot of people are saying it’s great, or we get to spend more time with family, or be in the comfort of our own homes, it’s not like we were called to war like our older relatives… but here’s the thing. For some of us, all this down time, this alone time, we wind up at war with ourselves for a lot of that. We use our jobs, our passions, our movement, to help us cope with the, at times, constant assault our inner demons launch daily. By being forced to “self quarantine” if we’re not mindful and not cognizant of where our minds can go in all this stillness, we could wind up in a really dangerous place.

I’ve spent a lot of time cultivating a space that mostly radiates peace and tranquility in my home, my own brand of calming chaos. Now having these vibes interrupted by my work day, my work stress, and my work energy definitely take a toll on my brain when it’s time to shut down for the night. Something I’ve never been good at anyway.

While I am a HUGE fan of self reflection, going inward to find answers, and general good conversation with oneself, too much of a good thing can turn bad easy. We’ve proved this time and time again. My anxiety will TAKE OVER if given too much time. It’s like my brain starts picking apart every interaction and moment of the day and magnifies the slightest inconvenience or question mark. Suddenly there is an elephant sitting on my chest and why did I cheat on my Freshman Geometry test when I knew Mr. Gerritsen would see the writing on my wrist! (Obviously that’s where it all went wrong you know?!)

That is how my brain works. It will spiral out of control at the drop of pin. All of this being cooped up at home? Not being able to separate work and home? (Again, something I’ve never been the best at.) My anxiety is barely being kept at bay. The fact that I don’t know for how long this will actually last? Almost enough to break the dam WIDE OPEN.

I have a feeling I’m not the only one. A lot of people don’t talk about their daily struggles for fear of being isolated. Well friends, we’re isolated anyway right now, so maybe talking about it make people feel more together while we’re alone.

I’ve decided to add some items to my daily routine to help with this part of myself. A friend of mine said today that everyone will learn something from this. He couldn’t have been more accurate. Somethings I’ve already started taking away:

• Shutting down when it’s time to shut down is good, even if you still have stuff to do. Rest is not the enemy, its the cavalry.
• Make time to take breaths. I’ve scheduled outside time, a time to just turn off electronics, to eat, to call my family. (sounds like things I should have been doing all along)
• Practice meditation, and ACTUALLY try. I’ll probably blog about this one separately so I won’t harp too much right now.
• The same way you have work check-ins every day (and we all do right now), have self check-ins. Set an alarm on your phone at 2 times in the day to stop and ask yourself if you need to stand, talk to someone, go for a walk.
• When you start to slip into panic mode, call a friend. Watch something that on TV or your phone that makes you smile. (I watch my sister in laws videos of my niece or oddly enough criminal minds….2 very different things, haha)
• Seriously…. meditate.
• EXERCISE! I cannot stress this ENOUGH! Movement is what keeps us going! Don’t stop. Go for a jog, download an app, stretch on a yoga mat. Just move your bones.
• Keep a journal, or a blog, or notebook. Write how you’re feeling and be completely honest. As a writer I think writing everything down will fix all the worlds problems, I’ve yet to be proven wrong.
• Remember your PEOPLE. No matter how alone we feel, we never really are. And deep down we know that. Remember your PEOPLE. Even if we can’t sit at the coffee shops, and gyms, and restaurants we used to, they’re still there.

These may seem like silly ideas or common sense. But really it’s just a reminder that for those of you that are struggling right now, I see you. I am you. And the whole world might not understand and the whole world might be standing still and that’s scary, but you are safe and you are going to be ok.