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Quarantine and Compassion

As we move into a more “normal” way of life, it’s hard to believe that many of us had been under a SAH order for 12 plus weeks. 

I don’t know about you, but my emotions ran the gamut of: Wait, what? (March) To okay, I can work with this, (April) this isn’t so bad, the slow pace is nice (May), to OMG! I need to get out of my house, how much longer? (Memorial Day). And, pretty much every emotion in between.

I had sad days, frustrated days, days full of gratitude and simple blessings like finding the last box of pasta on the shelf. Some days I wanted to melt down, scream, stay in bed and other days I wanted to binge watch The Ozarks on Netflix. I feel like I made a thousand dinners and more french toast and pancakes then there are days in a year. I like to cook and bake but three meals a day, EVERY day felt overwhelming. 

But through it all, and what I hope will continue to help me get through it, and maybe you too, was self compassion.

It’s hard and yucky right now, the future is pretty uncertain. No matter where you stand politically, it’s just disheartening. As we get back to normal, who knows what “normal” will even look like, a month or three months from now. But, we have been through hard, yucky, depressing things before. I have, you have! And you and I came through and are here to talk about it!

What we need is compassion. Compassion for our fellow earthlings 🌎compassion for ourselves – now is not the time to worry about your carbs or how many calories that bag of Reese’s had. 🍭 There are more important things than the miles you ran on the treadmill.

Remind yourself that being a part of a pandemic and all the thoughts and feelings that go with it is what makes you human. It’s okay to have bad days, and it’s okay to enjoy not having to get dressed every day. It’s okay to miss your friends and it’s okay to bake brownies and eat them because you miss human connection. All the feelings are valid and all the ways you are using to cope are valid. 

Are there any bad ways to cope? If you are using a coping mechanism that makes you feel worse about yourself, or is a poor choice from a recovery standpoint or if you are using a coping mechanism that leaves you feeling sick, punished or out of control then you should reach out to a body positive professional – check out the HAES website for a list of providers, as well as using a search engine to look up professionals in your area that are Certified Intuitive Eating counselors and dietitians.

Take care of yourself the best you can, feed yourself so you have enough strength to fight the virus if you catch it. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s time to worry about your body size. Unfollow “influencers” who claim body size is a risk factor, that you will be happier if you lost weight or that a pandemic is a time to diet. 

Remind yourself that honoring your hunger is self care, skipping a workout because you would rather walk outside is self compassion and that getting more sleep is a way to improve your health, especially when you are under stress or in emotional turmoil. 

If today is a pull the covers over your head day, there is a good chance tomorrow will be better. Take this pandemic, and any other curve ball life throws at you, one step at a time, keep asking yourself, “what do I need today?” There are many things in your life to be grateful for, take a moment to acknowledge them. Show compassion for all people, including yourself. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

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