As we all continue to fumble our way through a completely different world, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the differences in daily life that we’re experiencing since social distancing measures began. I’m spending almost all of my time at home, working from home, and so forth. For me, this isn’t really something new, as I already spent a lot of time working from home. I know, however, that for people who aren’t used to it, there can be a rough adjustment period. As someone who has done this for a long time, I usually recommend the following:
- Establish a consistent structure and schedule for the day (people who know me are now rolling their eyes and saying, “That’s his answer for everything!”). Don’t just meander through the day without any sense of what you’re doing and when. Schedules and structures can help regulate emotions (it can be calming to know what you’re doing and to have some predictability to your day) and reduce decision-making fatigue (from always having to decide what to do when). Be spontaneous when you can if that’s important to you, but have an overall structure or foundation for your day.
- Establish a strong morning routine that makes you look forward to getting up. Have a really enjoyable breakfast, a morning walk, spend time with a loved one, or do something else you really enjoy for the first hour or two after getting up. My personal favourite routine is to make breakfast for me and my wife, eat and read a book, and then practice mindfulness and exercise before starting work.
- Set consistent start and stop times for work each day so your work does not leak into every waking hour.
- Ban yourself from working after your stop time (e.g., stop at 4pm and really stop – no checking email, responding to work stuff, etc.).
- Establish a work zone that’s the only place you work. If you don’t have much space, take down the work zone at the end of the work day so you don’t have to keep looking at it during your leisure time. I owe this last bit of advice to a colleague at our centre (Angelina Yiu).
- Get rid of pop-up notifications on your electronic devices. Ideally, get rid of email from your phone altogether – why do you need it if you’re not going anywhere and can just check your email at your computer? I deleted my work email profiles from my phone several months ago, and I’m no less productive (and definitely calmer) than before.
- Incorporate health-promoting activities during a bullet-proof time of the day (e.g., I do my mindfulness and exercise routines early in the morning before the kids wake up). Make sure the things you do to enhance your health and well-being can’t be interrupted or replaced by other things.
- Try to allow yourself some extra luxuries that make being home more enjoyable. My favourites are really fancy cheese and snacks that I look forward to enjoying at the end of the work day.
- Spend less time on electronics. This is a hard one, as we are now even more reliant on electronics to stay connected, but I firmly believe that having electronic-free times is good for mental health. Try reading an actual physical book, going for walks, hikes, etc., view nature, try cooking, meditating, spending time with the loved ones you have at home (if you do), petting and caring for your pets if you have them, and so forth.
- Embrace and accept boredom. Boredom is just a signal that you aren’t satisfied with what you’re currently doing. It doesn’t mean you need to engage in stimulating activities all the time. Sit with boredom, accept it, and get used to it. Use it productively. There are way worse states to experience than boredom.
- Use the extra time you have (since you’re not commuting, which takes up a ridiculous amount of time) to take up a new hobby, exercise more consistently, engage in some other meaningful activity, or just relax and do nothing for a little while. I have seen so many more people walking, biking, and running on the trails than ever before. This can be alarming, and I often find myself having to jump off the trail to remain at a reasonable distance! That said, I have to believe that many of these people who were previously sitting in offices rather than out enjoying the outdoors are starting to rethink their previous work lives!
- Remind yourself that each day you observe reasonable social distancing guidelines, you’re helping your province, country, and in many ways, the world. You’re preventing people from becoming seriously ill and dying, and hopefully by front-loading the social distancing, shortening this period of restricted activity and economic hardship. It may seem like a cliché now, but we are all in this together, and we’re all making sacrifices to get through the pandemic. Remind yourself of the importance of what you’re doing.
~ Alexander L. Chapman, Ph.D., R.Psych.