By: Airiz Casta
Chasing summits, seas, and the sun is how my summers are usually spent.
This year, however, life has other plans. My wildest adventures have been Katniss Everdeen-ing my way through grocery runs with my freedom anchored on a piece of paper. This year, I find myself snuggling up in bed as I hear the last screech of curfew sirens in hopes that we are “flattening the curve.”
The night the lockdown was extended, I was curled up in blankets holding on to memories I have packed for days like these. I let my mind replay moments of wander; of me right at the cloud-hugging summit of Mount Pulag. Moments that whisked away the mountains of worries at the back of my head.
For the most part, this is enough. I’ve allowed my mind to travel for me as I stay within the four walls of my home. I’ve found peace in revisiting novels and starting anthologies that have taken my breath away.
But even with fiction as a haven, I can’t help but feel anxious. Being an overthinker is a heavy burden when you’re cooped up for a long time. And not knowing when (or if!) everything will ever be okay, doesn’t help either.
Staying calm is easier said than done, especially when I know the real stories are out there, told in cold statistics, and a feed full of dreary headlines. So, amid a furious pandemic, how does one cope?
Stay Connected
Social distancing need not mean emotional distancing, too. Maximize your social media accounts and check in on those you love. Better yet, pick up the phone and call them!
A simple “kumusta ka (how are you)?” is enough. I have a set of group chats that are constantly buzzing: one group where we watch live streams of performing artists, another where fellow writers share tips on overcoming quarantine slumps, and one where we just throw in fandom-related stuff!
My boyfriend plays video games with me where our characters get to embark on thrilling escapades while hiking the canyons of Zion National Park.
We are so lucky to be born in an era where we can reach out to another person with just a click. In times like these, let’s make good use of it.
Filter your media consumption
Our minds are made to protect us, which is why it absorbs negative or threatening information more heavily. And if you’re an overthinker, this “negative bias” can take a toll on your mental health.
“Are we flattening the curve? Has mass testing already started? Do people have enough food to eat? When will the Enhanced Community Quarantine be lifted? “
The barrage of questions is unstoppable. Instead, I’ve learned to limit my exposure to the media, filtering what I absolutely must know vs. those produced as clickbait.
I trust that what’s important enough, will reach me one way or another.
While social media helps keep everyone virtually linked, they also have their evils. Some come in the form of Facebook connections who bombard your feed with fake news, or acquaintances who yammer on and on about their “hot takes” on the latest issues.
I do myself a favor and just weed these people out. Make your online world a little easier to breathe in by hitting the “unfollow” and “unfriend” buttons.
Rest
One of the hardest challenges is getting actual rest through this lockdown.
Ever since we’ve been asked to work from home, I’ve found myself teetering at the edge of burnout. “Home” and “work” used to have a solid delineation in my pre-pandemic vocabulary; marrying the two threw a wrench in my system.
Having a makeshift office set up an arm span away from my bed makes me feel I’m on-call for work 24/7 and it’s draining.
After more than a month of this scheme, I learned to limit my schedule for work and follow it strictly. Uninstalling and/or muting work-related apps on my phone works, too.
I get enough sleep, and it’s a game-changer. While ruminations and worry are still frequent before bedtime, I at least get my well-coveted (and much needed) eight hours of sleep. I can finally enjoy not having to get up at 4:00 AM to escape the city’s traffic jam just to make it to work on time.
Be kind to yourself
I’ve long accepted that worrying will be a permanent part of me. Instead, I’ve learned to acknowledge these worries—both of the past and the unforeseeable future—and make myself focus on the present. I allow myself to feel what I need to at the moment because I know that these are what make me, us, human.
And while the world outside may seem as if it’s crumbling, it’s not a reason for us not to be happy.
True, the world we once knew may never be the same after this pandemic. And we may have to adjust as necessary. I don’t know when I’ll get to trek the northern mountains again, or when beach trips will be allowed. I don’t even know if summers will continue to revolve around these places at all.
Be as it may, there is no other way to move but forward and make the best of the situation we’re in. From here on out, the best we can do is take care of ourselves, and zero in on growth while we’re at it.
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