For most of us, home is our haven. A place of refuge. A place where we can think out loud and just relax. However, to some, staying indoors for too long causes irritability and listlessness.
When you cannot leave the walls of your home, you need to be resourceful and creative in keeping yourself sane and entertained.
Here are some ways to help keep your days go by faster.
- Get physical.
Move, walk around the house, and stretch your muscles. Design an exercise routine, or maybe start with basic yoga. Aside from helping you increase your strength, exercise can lessen your anxiety and help you sleep better. You can check online to get started; there are a lot of yoga and exercise apps, YouTube and Facebook videos, or virtual workout classes for free.
- Fuel your passion.
You have been so busy with life the past few months, or years even, that you have had to keep your passions on hold because you just did not have time for it. Now is the perfect time to take a break from your busy life and feed your passion. Paint, bake, write, or play video games – do more of what makes you feel good.
- Go on a digital tour.
Too many museums and so little time. Finally, you can visit museums and theme parks you have always wanted to explore. More and more museums and theme parks are opening their doors to allow people to make virtual visits. This is your chance to check them out and decide which ones you will physically visit once the pandemic is over.
- Virtually go to concerts, operas, and the theaters.
Since the lockdowns, artists, producers, and opera houses are putting their works on stream for everyone to appreciate and enjoy, for free. A number of musicians are also doing real-time scheduled performances online.
- Catch up on your shows.
You can finally catch up on that TV show you totally loved and also totally forgot about because you have been too caught up with deadlines. Maybe watch those movies your friends have been talking about. Time to enjoy your streaming service subscription! All these, at your own pace.
- Decorate.
Most of us still have to meet deadlines amidst being home 24/7. Choose a spot in your house, one that you feel is conducive to your creativity and productivity. Decorate it, make it yours; own it. Then maybe, on the side, also clean other parts of your house.
- Develop and cultivate new interests.
Try new things and maybe find new interests. Listen to podcasts, watch TED presentations like TEDtalks or TED-Ed, read books from a genre you would not normally read. Authors such as Neil Gaiman, Paulo Coelho, and J.K Rowling, to name a few, have made some of their works available for free, in audiobooks and/or e-books formats. A number of online library houses also made their book collections accessible to everyone (for free).
- Maybe learn a thing or two.
Webinars, online lectures, video tutorials. Learn a new skill or a new language. Explore new things. You can learn to cook a new dish, improve your makeup skills, or discover what hydroponics is all about. Take your pick; it is all there on the web.
- Socialize.
Keep in touch, virtually, with people outside your house. Aside from the daily chats and video calls, you can organize a video party or an online meetup with friends. Play online board games or host a virtual tea party.
- Find the fun in the frivolous.
There is no need to be always so serious. Read memes, watch TikTok videos, or maybe do one yourself. Dance to all the songs in a random Spotify playlist. Sing along to the songs you have always dreamed of singing even if you cannot carry a tune. If it helps you cope with the fact that you cannot go out, then do it.
- Enjoy the downtime.
For years, you have been ranting about how you never seem to get enough sleep, get the chance to walk leisurely, or just lounge around. Now is the perfect time to enjoy all the downtime. Sleep in until noon, shower a little longer, or read a book as slowly as you wish. Do what makes your heart happy.
- Try to find peace.
When people start to feel they are being deprived of something, like being able to go out of their houses whenever they wish to, the level of anxiety and stress could spike up to a whole new level of high. In times like these, prayer can help calm down your nerves. Different parishes have been celebrating masses online so that their parishioners may attend when they feel the need. Online meditations and recollections are available too. Ask your friends about these.#
Banner photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.
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