6 Keys To Adapting To The New Reality After Confinement
For several weeks now, the coronavirus pandemic has become the topic on the news in practically every country in the world, and for good reasons.
The truth is that it is to be expected; It is a situation for which there are no precedents in recent decades, and the first time that a situation of global confinement has occurred in which millions of people also have the opportunity to create and consume information on television, the Internet, etc.
However, as we move towards the end of this quarantine situation through de-escalation and returning to the streets, a phenomenon arises that many had not taken into account: for some people, it is difficult to return to the lifestyle habits of before. Therefore, here we will see several key ideas to adapt to the new normal after confinement as recommendations to apply on a daily basis.
How to adapt to the new reality after confinement ends?
As psychologists who are experts in mental health, we believe that when returning to normal life after the quarantine period driven by the state of alarm, it is advisable to follow these guidelines.
1. Take the opportunity to exercise outdoors
If you have done things well during confinement, you will not have stopped exercising using the excuse that you cannot leave your home. Now, however, is the time to take advantage of the fact that you can go out, since you will have the possibility of going to areas with cleaner air
The latter is so good for your health that, in the long term, it can even be noticed in your mental agility, since it has been shown that frequently exposing yourself to unpolluted air helps keep your working memory in good condition, responsible for carrying out complex mental operations such as reasoning and calculation.
2. If returning to normal stresses you, practice Mindfulnes
Mindfulness is a set of exercises inspired by traditional meditation that help combat anxiety and to experience the present moment without dragging stress-generating thoughts; For this reason, many psychologists use this tool in our work with patients. Fortunately, it is very easy to learn some of these exercises and apply them to daily life at the user level.
3. Readjust your schedule
It is important that your daily life does not lose its structure. We must bear in mind that changing habits can lead to chaos when it comes to dividing our responsibilities between the hours we have, so that we waste time when we should be working and work when we should be resting or, worse still, sleeping. To avoid this, take a moment specifically to redesign your schedule and put it in a place in your home where you will see it frequently, such as the refrigerator.
4. Check that you are getting enough sleep
With the change of dynamics of the return to normality, Your biological clock may be experiencing some changes and notice that you feel like sleeping at different times than a few weeks ago. Prevent this from becoming a snowball effect problem: maintain the discipline to always go to sleep at the right time, without postponing sleep or the moment you get out of bed.
This is a context in which you can make impromptu meet-ups with people whom you have only seen through a screen for weeks… of course, maintaining a safe distance until necessary. This way you will strengthen these links, which may have been weakened due to the confinement situation (especially in the case of people outside your family environment).
6. Consider modifying your diet
Now that you’ll be going out more, your body will use more energy. Therefore, you may need to consume more nutrients to keep up. Of course, if during confinement you have not significantly changed the type of food and the amount you consume daily, do not add anything else. Remember that good physical condition is reflected in your mental health, and that not taking care of yourself leads to feeling worse and adopting more harmful habits that affect us psychologically.
Are you interested in having the professional support of psychologists?
If you are going through difficult times and think you need psychotherapeutic help, we invite you to contact our team of professionals.
At Psicotools we offer therapy both in person at our center in Barcelona and in an online format, we train in Mindfulness practices, and we serve people of all ages. We have many years of experience intervening in emotional, affective, cognitive and behavioral problems. You can see more information about us, as well as our contact details, on this page.
