The NHS and World Health Organisation have recommended we practise social distancing, staying at home to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Your mental wellbeing plays a huge role in your overall health, and it should be prioritised. All our teams are working from home, and we have lots of tips for helping to stay healthy at this difficult time. Here are some of our basics:

Keep a routine

One of the best things that you can do is stick to a routine: this helps preserves your mental wellbeing. So, if you are used to going to the gym before work, try and wake up early and get an at-home workout done before you start the workday from your home environment.

Maintaining as much normalcy as possible with your daily routine can help keep your mood as lifted as possible and prevent boredom and distress from taking over.

If you have children at home, it’s also important to create a routine for them now that schools are closed. They may be practising virtual learning but implementing a structured schedule for them is useful so they know what your expectations are. Try to limit screen time where possible and include some learning activities throughout the day.

Get a good night’s sleep

This goes hand-in-hand with sticking to a routine. While you’re confined at home, it can be easy to go to bed or sleep in later than you usually would. Breaking your usual sleep routine can have negative effects on your overall mental wellbeing, so you should try and attempt to stick to your typical schedule as much as possible.

Use the power of technology

It can be easy to feel lonely. Fortunately, new technologies have made it easy to connect with others. Reaching out to loved ones can help reduce the feelings of loneliness and anxiety, and to supplement your social life whilst you’re at home social distancing. If you feel down, use video calling technology or social media to get in touch with your friends and family.

Don’t obsess over the news

It can be easy to become overwhelmed by watching the news and constantly reviewing the updates on COVID-19 situation. While it’s important to be informed, you should not obsess over the news. Maybe consider checking for updates once in the morning and once at night.

We hope these suggestions may help your mental well-being whilst the COVID-19 situation develops and changes but shouldn’t be considered as medical advice. 

If you have concerns about your mental wellbeing, please contact your mental health professional or use the NHS webpage for guidance.

We’ll have some more tips on social media over the coming days. Our best wishes go out to you, your family and friends in what is a difficult time for everybody.