Are You Okay?

Hey friends. It’s a wild Friday night over here in the land of social isolation. I just ate way too much Brie and I am not feeling bad about it at all. I was a little bummed as I tried to go on to a Facebook Live Happy Hour with Kelly Corrigan but it was acting glitchy. I guess I’ll catch the recap later. I was excited to join a party with my glass of wine, even if it was on Facebook. The upside? I still had wine. And cheese. And chocolate. Obviously I survived.

As I have mentioned in my previous posts, things are weird. There isn’t a whole lot of normal. None of us can keep up with what day of the week it is yet we keep going to bed and waking up. We keep putting one foot in front of the other. It’s like the movies Groundhog Day or 50 First Dates. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. When things feel uncertain, we just have to do our best. I wanted to check in and see if you are okay? I also wanted to remind you that it is totally okay to not be okay.

What are you doing to keep yourself engaged? Social Media happy hours? Zooming with family + friends? Facetime? Please tell me about your creative ways of plugging in with the ones you love and can’t see in person.

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Are You Okay?

I ask this question because this is really freaking hard. And scary. And exhausting. It’s a vicious circle of emotions and you are absolutely allowed to feel all of them! I saw something on Facebook earlier about how all of the positive stuff makes people feel bad about themselves if they are not feeling optimistic. Let me tell you something, the people (myself included) who are sharing the positive or funny stuff aren’t necessarily not feeling anxious or scared – we are just trying hard to find something that lifts us up because it’s so easy to be taken down by all of the ‘real-life’ up in our faces.

If I share something upbeat, it’s because I am hoping to bring a smile to your face. To give you a moment of reprieve from the sadness in your heart. I am not at all dismissing that you are feeling all of this in a big way. We are all feelers. Every single one of us has a buy into this big giant crazy thing called COVID. It’s everywhere and unavoidable. We can’t escape it unless we completely detach from all technology. Stat at home, shelter in place, pandemic. All of these things are in our faces when we look at our phones, computers, tv’s or even on the radio!

We are scolded for leaving the house. How many memes have been made that shout STAY THE F**K AT HOME? Um, a whole lot. If you are bothered by the ‘f word’ skip this 😉 If you are easily amused like me, go ahead and give it a go. Warning: It’s a bit of an earworm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-Q5fJTgx_E

So I Guess What I Am Saying Is

Feel all your feels. You get to have good days and bad days. You can cry in one minute and laugh in the next. All of the feelings and mood swings are totally okay because this is not normal. We crave normal. Most of us are creatures of habit and thrive on consistency. Most of us are not teachers thus homeschooling our kids is not something that we shine at. It’s okay!!

Many are suffering financially. On top of everything else that has become inconsistent, people are now scrambling to figure out how to pay bills without an income. These are hard times! If you are on the other side of this and still earning a normal paycheck, please do your best to support small businesses. Our local grocery store even offered a service of buying bags of groceries for the elderly. These little things can mean a really big deal to others. We are all just trying to do our best. Guess what? Love + kindness are totally contagious!

You can only stuff it all down for so long. I most definitely don’t have all of the answers. I just go to a place where I always go when shit seems heavy. I remind myself that everything will be okay. Then I cross all of my fingers and toes because hope is all I’ve got. Also, a good ugly cry is a great release on the hardest of days.

Task Yourself + Stay Consistent – How I Challenge Myself

In this time of social isolation, I am doing a few things daily. My schedule isn’t the best. I sleep in longer than I should BUT I feel more rested than I ever have. I walk and do meditation every day. When I say that I meditate, I simply dedicate 3-5 minutes to being alone in a guided meditation. I used the Insight Timer app on my phone. I have also incorporated 3 additional workouts into my week. I have a lot of workout videos to utilize. My current favorite is this one. I was in a slump a few weeks back and grabbed these vitamins for a little extra pep. I also started writing 750 words a day over at 750words.com. It helps keep me engaged and honestly, it feels like journaling because it’s private and just for me. It’s a great cathartic release when things are making me crazy.

We are expecting rain over the net few days so I am looking forward to reading To Shake the Sleeping Self. Reading books can make us feel like we are a part of a different space or time and sometimes those ‘brain breaks’ are so good for us! I teeter between different genres based on what I feel like I need at the moment.

I have to say, I am also a bit of a nerd when it comes to committing. I like to stick to it or as my friend Tami Hackbarth says, I don’t like to break the chain. What small commitments are you sticking to every single day? Can you add something small to give yourself something to check off that is all about you and your own self-care?

You’re Doing Great – Cut Yourself Some Slack

Hang in there! This is tough. Give yourself lots of extra grace. This isn’t a competition to see who does this the best. We are all in it together, doing our best and hoping for a positive outcome based on our current actions.