Random | Work From Home, Life During Lock down, 6 Things to Keep Your COVID-19 Anxiety at Bay

fortunate to be able to work from home

The Philippines (and the whole world) is going through very trying times. COVID-19 outbreak that has started in one country has now spread to so many countries in the whole world. The COVID-19 positive cases is now above 2 million and still counting, death toll is rising, lots of patients in critical conditions. Every government is trying to control and curb the spread of the virus, issuing lock downs and restricting movements of its people. The Philippines is one of the countries affected by this pandemic and our government and the people are struggling to to get through it. We are a third-world country and our resources are limited so the people are panicking, getting more anxious as the days go by.

The pandemic and lock down has caused lost of jobs for many. But I'm glad I still have mine, for now. I'm one of the few fortunate members of Metro Manila workforce that can do work from home during these crazy times. And I'm very grateful for it. I was supposed to terminate my internet connection last January (see this post for the reason) but my provider gave me a 6-month discounted rate so I didn't terminate it. Glad I didn't; otherwise, it would be very hard for me to work from home since my mobile connection is very slow. I was able to control and discipline myself anyway, so I probably am not terminating my DSL connection, even after the 6-month discounted rate is over.

Anyway, going through this crisis emphasizes some of the realizations I listed in this post. I'm glad I started eating and drinking right again. Also glad that I started doing some fitness exercises once again. Even though I'm staying home, just like everyone else, I still do some indoor cardio workouts. And I'm happy to say I didn't gain weight (lost a few pounds, actually), even after more than a month of just staying home. I still do struggle financially, but I still can manage it, for now. I'm thankful and grateful always, especially to our Lord Almighty because He is always there for me, for my loved ones; thank you very much dear God!

But there are times that I can't help but get anxious. I can't help and wonder what the future holds for me, for my family, for everyone. Because I'm scared, just like everyone else.

During the first week of the lock down, I'm so anxious I cried almost everyday. On the very first day of the lock down, I felt body pains. I had stuffy nose, too. So every few minutes, I took my temperature. And one time, I got a reading of 38°C! OMG, I don't know what to do. I don't want to go to the hospital because I know that most hospitals have COVID cases. So I just read and researched a lot about the disease. The articles I've read just compounded my anxiety and I got scared even more, actually. Then I found an article comparing the symptoms of COVID-19, influenza and common cold (see photo below). This list calmed me somehow but I still slept that night anxious. The next day, my anxiety made me automatically reach out for the thermometer as soon as I woke up; glad to see a normal reading once again. My body pain is milder, too. (The pain is probably because I did a workout 2 days before the lock down.) So I'm somehow relieved, I'm okay, I said to myself. But I know I'm not 100% okay. I still cry up to now, mostly when I'm saw sick and death posts related to COVID-19. But I'm better now, compared to the first 2 weeks of the lock down.

I forgot the site where I got this, I hope it's okay to post it here.

So how did I overcome my anxiety?  What are the things that kept me sane during this lock down period? Here they are dearies, the 6 things I did (and still doing) to keep my sanity and overcome anxiety brought about by the on-going health crisis.

STOP reading COVID-19-related articles

I'd like to think that I'm the kind of person that doesn't get affected by the negativities around me. So I read a lot! I read about the disease, I watched videos that discusses corona virus. I even read and watched stories of people who have gone through with the disease. I listened intently on the symptoms they felt. And then unconsciously, I will make an inventory of the symptoms myself, checking if I do have one or more of their symptoms. Crazy, isn't it? And then I remembered my doctors' reaction during one of my check-ups before this lock down started. One of them said "you are not sick, do you want me to say you are?". The other one said "I think you have fibromyalgia", sort of saying the pain I'm relating to them is just in my head. Prior to my check ups, I read a lot of articles related to the symptoms I felt, those are what prompted me to make consultations with them. And then it hit me! When it comes to health-related issues, I am affected by what I'm reading (or watching), without realizing I'm actually affected by them. So I stopped! I stopped reading all and every posts I saw on Facebook that are related to corona virus and COVID-19. I still do read some COVID-related articles but the ones I read were just those DOH updates, just so I am aware of what is happening around me.

Boost immune system by eating and drinking right

Eating and drinking right, these are the two things that I tried to do everyday but especially now that we are in a health crisis. I don't have anything against those who are engaging on a very focused diet but for my self, I believe on a balanced one. I eat and drink mostly everything, as long as I do it in moderation. Of course, I do stay away with junk foods and sodas, as much as possible . They aren't good for the health, anyway. This habit keeps me sane, too, because I know I'm doing my part to keep myself, my body, strong and healthy.

Exercise

Before the lock down, I always make sure to do 10K steps a day. There are some days I wasn't able to do it but on the average, it's 10K steps per day. Also, every weekend (since January), I do around 30-40 minutes of walking-jogging-walking at the park; a total of around 1 hour of cardio exercise including the walk to and fro my place (my place is just around 1.4 kilometers away from the park). But now that we are in a lock down, I cannot do it anymore. So every other day, I try to do a 15-20 minute indoor cardio workout and then a 30-minute workout on weekends. These workouts keep me sane, too, as the workouts assure me that I don't have breathing issues (I am that praning hehe).

Watch inspiring and/or funny videos

When it comes to watching, I used to enjoy only spy/military/police-related movies and series. But nowadays, I enjoyed watching short and funny FB and/or YT videos, too. I like watching Smile Squad by Markian and his friends (search them on FB, if you're interested). I also like watching videos of The Hungry Syrian Wanderer on YT; they are inspiring videos. Basel (the vlogger) is a funny guy, too; I don't get bored watching his videos. I don't even click 'skip ads' on his videos so I could somehow help him do his good deeds. Surprisingly, I enjoyed Camille Co's YT videos, too. I'm not into fashion and make-up stuff but I still watch her videos. I like her personality and the way she presented her content; she's kinda funny, too. I also like watching her videos where her hubs is present; such a lovely couple.

Reach out to Family and Friends

I'm used to living alone since my younger years. But with this on-going health crisis, I suddenly felt the need to be with my family. Of course, I can't as my work is here in the Metro. Although I can do work from home in the province, telco signal and internet availability there is not that reliable. Besides, I was traveling to and from work using mass transportation (MRT) so I'm afraid I might have caught the disease unknowingly and I don't want to infect them so I stayed here, alone. Thankfully, we now have cellphones to communicate with our loved ones so I just called them from time to time, making sure that they are all okay and reminding them to stay at home and to always practice good hygiene habits. 

PRAY

I do like to think I am a strong person. But this COVID-19 pandemic made me realize I am not. There are times I suddenly cried and I don't even know why I'm crying. When these crying bouts happen, I pray. I pray to the Lord for my family's safety, for my BFF's safety, for my relatives' and friends' safety, for my self and for everyone else's safety. I surrender to Him all my worries, all my fears, and pray that He gives us all the strength we need to go through with this crisis and come out alive, strong and healthy. This is the most important thing that's keeping me sane these days, even when I'm just alone here in the Metro.

~ oo00oo ~

Oh wow, I made a lengthy post today. 😀 I hope you read it through, learn something from it and get inspired with it. Let's all pray that this COVID-19 pandemic ends soon so we can all go back to our normal lives; though this "normal" might be different from the "normal" we have, before the crisis and the lock down. Stay healthy,  stay safe, stay home everyone! Blessed Sunday to all! 🙏