How to survive the lockdown and actually enjoy it
Esther Cole,
7th Apr 2020
Tags:
Life
Blog
Friendship
Hope
Purpose
Here we are, in lockdown. A lot has changed in the last few weeks, and suddenly we’ve found ourselves living in a crazy and uncertain world.
Normal life has been put on hold and none of us really know when we'll be able to go back again.
Personally, I've found myself feeling really overwhelmed. Overwhelmed by the sadness of people losing their lives, people losing jobs, worrying for my own family and friends, and for my own health and future.
While I remind myself that it's perfectly okay to feel this way, I'm looking for ways to find the joy and the good in this situation. Here are some ways that I’m finding joy.
Keep a routine
Now I definitely haven't been great at this. I may have spent a few evenings re-watching Gilmore Girls until 2 am, and then consequently waking up at 1 pm the following day to eat my breakfast at 2 pm. Don't judge!
But as much as possible, I'm trying to keep to a good schedule of going to sleep, waking up, making sure I have a shower, and eating meals when I usually would.
Learn something new
I can't do my job from home, so I have a lot of free time on my hands. I'm trying to spend it as productively as possible, while also having quite a few days sat in my pj's eating ice cream and watching Netflix.
So far, I've created home workouts, baked, painted, and spent more time blogging, which I'm loving.
I have a list of books I'm hoping to get through, and I've been songwriting with friends online too.
Stay connected
I don't know about you, but I'm massively missing my mates, hugs, Nandos, and Mcdonalds. And once we're out of this, I seriously can't wait to eat a whole load of food with my pals.
Although it’s tough to be apart from them, I'm so pleased that we live in a time where we can FaceTime and use apps like Skype and Zoom to stay in touch.
So far, we've done quizzes together, celebrated birthdays with some very bad karaoke, and even had movie nights together. You just have to be really good at making sure you all hit play at the exact same time.
Pray
Prayer is powerful, and I believe it changes things.
When I find myself feeling anxious or upset by the current situation, giving those feelings to God in prayer really helps.
I always try to start by giving thanks; I'm so grateful for our incredible NHS and all of the key workers who are working tirelessly to keep us safe. And I find that giving thanks like this puts me in a good mindset to pray about the harder things we're facing, and the uncertainty of what the next weeks and months may hold.
Although it's easy to become discouraged, know you are loved and valued, and that God wants to hear you.
Stay safe and find the joy in every day!
