Staying Well While Staying Home
by Annie O Brien | 23rd Mar 2020
The importance of good wellness over the next few weeks and beyond!
With everything going on in these uncertain times, we must think positively about what we
can control.
As always, our lifestyle habits will have an effect on our overall health and wellness.
Especially if you’re self-isolating and working from home.
In a health crisis, it sharpens our focus to how important being and staying well is, for us and
our loved ones. We remember to not take our health for granted and to invest in it.
Building our immunity and keeping it strong is critical when faced with a contagious and
infectious disease.
Staying as well as you can, getting plenty of exercise and staying positive are so important
for your wellbeing at this stressful time. Try to maintain as normal a routine as possible.
Tips for Staying Healthy
Eating your meals regularly, going for healthy choices and making sure your diet is rich in fruits and vegetables (frozen are just as good) and fibre rich foods, lean protein, such as chicken, fish and eggs and healthy fats will keep you well-nourished and strong.
Get plenty of water – keep up the intake 1.5l-2l per day. It’s easy to fall into the tea or coffee by the bucket load when at home all day. Just have a pint of water on the table and sip at it through the day. Aim to fill that glass at least 3 times.
Get some exercise – whether it’s jumping jacks in the sitting room or skipping outside, try and get 30 mins of activity each day, you’ll reduce stress and strengthen your immunity plus the feel-good effects of endorphins will lift your mood – a critical aspect of staying well in lockdown.
Get your rest! Sleep is when we repair and restore. It’s so important for a strong immune system. This is not a holiday, so maintaining routine and going to bed and getting up at the same time each day is really important.
Go easy on the junk. Again, it’s not Christmas, we need to maintain normalcy at this abnormal time. Don’t use this as an excuse to go mad on the treats.
Don’t Stress Out!
A word on stress:
Stress can have a negative impact on our immune system so we need to come up with ways to alleviate this.
I know with so many people faced with financial hardship along with the
worry of being or falling ill that this might sound trite but if you can engage in stress
relieving practices each day, mindfulness, meditation, deep breathing, exercising etc.
Although we are social distancing, we can still talk on the phone or FaceTime our family and
friends.
Talking is therapeutic and good for the soul, so try and stay connected with our loved ones
and know that this too shall pass.