With quarantine in full effect, your life (and possibly your sanity) is maybe heading one of two ways. What does that mean?
Well, with people being forced to work from home, you may be the type of person that finds this an opportunity to do MORE work. After all, the home office is much closer than a drive or train ride to another suburb. So you think, “I’ll get in and get more done with there being no need to drive anywhere.” Or maybe the times when you would normally stop for a break, be it morning tea or lunch, are now less and less routine. You skip them because maybe you’re ‘grazing’ through the day. Grazing when normally you would be hard at work. Your personal fridge and pantry have never been so close, almost like they’re at arms length! And what about knock off time? I bet there’s a good chance that when working from an office, you were out that door right on time. Or pretty close to it. Now, from home, you stay. You tell yourself, “I’ll just finish these last few emails,” or “I’ll just take this last phone call.” Now, you’re working longer. It may not feel longer because there was no drive or train ride, but you are.
You see, since this whole thing started, this has been an all too common trend I’ve been hearing. But I ask you, what effect do you think a pattern like the one I have mentioned above, is having on your health and wellness? I can almost certainly guarantee it won’t be an overly positive one. Working from home didn’t, and shouldn’t, suddenly mean we have more working hours available to us. More hours didn’t just magically appear. There is still just 24 hours in a day, 168 hours in a week.
So now i’ll ask you, what is the opportunity here?
I think the best way to answer that is to look at the flip side. You’re the opposite to the person above. You still rise at the same time. You want to keep routine after all. During the time that you’d normally be driving or catching a train to work, you’re now using that time for yourself or your family. Maybe you’re meditating. Maybe you’re stretching or getting some gentle breath work in to prime your body for the day. Maybe you’re sitting down with your family for breakfast, which is probably pretty rare when you have to drive to work. Maybe you’ve scheduled an exercise session. Or you make it a priority to finish up work on time and use that evening time to catch up with the kids. Play with them. Read to them. Or you spend more quality time with your partner. I think you catch my drift.
You see, with the current situation engulfing us, it can be easy to neglect oneself. To get caught up in the ‘lack of routine.’ We can’t let that happen! For your own health, well being, mindset, ALL of that!
If the scenario I described first at the top of this article sounds like the way you’re heading, (or already in) I urge you to stop! Ask yourself, “Is it really that urgent?” “How will this impact me for the rest of the day?” “Will my family benefit from me spending more time in the office?” Don’t let being in quarantine dictate your thought process. Taking time to reflect and ask yourself these types of questions may help bring a more clearer outlook not just on your own health, but also your family’s.
