Just like everyone else on the planet, the pandemic has by far taken more than a year of my life away from me. My days of going on adventures and simply having the best time have been replaced with days of blankly staring at the ceiling, wondering what the future holds for me and society. So many plans are on hold. Tons of dreams will have to wait. And entering the third phase of community quarantine in Metro Manila made things look like they’re not getting better anytime soon. I’m barely holding on and not being able to go out as much as I used to is starting to take a toll on me. I know others had it worse and I can only pray for the strength to carry on. I, too, have struggles which I refuse to give into, grateful I have a mind that’s ever ready to improvise and look for ways to keep me sane. If you’re just like me and you’re struggling to keep it together, here are ways I cope with stress during quarantine that you might find useful.
—Playing Online Games
I’m not a hardcore gamer nor anything like it. Rather, I’m an ordinary girl who had fun memories of playing video games while growing up. My Mortal Kombat days in video arcades after school has gained me, friends, despite being an introvert. I could still remember scavenging for scraps I could sell for a few bucks just to have an hour to play. We’re not poor but our parents were not into spoiling us hence we never owned a Game Boy or a PlayStation but this didn’t deter me from playing games. After all, it has been my all-time favorite destresser.
When Facebook came around, I was one of those people who got addicted to Farmville, waking up in the wee hours to harvest and to prevent my plants from wilting. During quarantine, I find comfort playing Genshin Impact and Mobile Legends. And although I enjoy playing on my phone, I still find time to search for new games online using my laptop. Recently, I came across Plays.Org and it just made me nostalgic. Not only does it remind me of the simple games I used to play back in the days but it gives me the opportunity to relive the characters I loved while growing up such as The Powerpuff Girls and Tom & Jerry.
My personal favorite is the Powerpuff Girls Unordinary Week. It’s basically Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup trying to survive the week fighting monsters. It’s simple and easy to play but gets more challenging as each day goes by. Using my mouse, I control my chosen character. Left-click is for defense and right-click is for attacking. Another game I like is Zombie Typing. Reminds me so much of Plants Vs Zombies but instead of plants shooting on zombies, the player types the words to eliminate them. It gets more exciting as the level goes up which also helps a lot with my typing skills. So if you’re not much of a gamer but are looking for ways to take your mind off the chaos of today and back to when everything was okay, you definitely have to give this a try.
—Working Out At Home
The best thing that probably happened to me during the pandemic was losing weight. I was at 75 kg when the quarantine started and I’m at 62kg at the moment. Although I started losing weight way before the pandemic even began, it became one of the ways I relieve myself of stress. When I work out, the goal is not to lose an inch off my waist nor a few numbers off the scale. It’s to simply kill time moving around and emptying my mind of all my nonsensical thoughts. Sitting idly, not doing anything tends to make me overthink which doesn’t really help with my mental health.
I work out at least four days a week. I’m not big on cardio but I always try to do jump ropes for at least 30 minutes or 1000 jumps whichever my enthusiasm would allow. My favorites are squats, lunges, and other leg workouts which I usually find on Youtube and Pinterest. Core workouts are probably the least of my favorites but they sure make me feel great after. If you plan to incorporate working out into your routine while in quarantine, I suggest you focus not on the results but on what it does to your body and mind. Don’t look at the scale. Steer clear of the tape measure. Instead, observe how happy and healthy you become mentally and emotionally after a few days of sweating it out.
—Limiting My Time On Social Media
As a blogger, social media is one of the tools I utilize to stay relevant and let people know about my latest posts. It’s also one of the best mediums I use to stay updated about the latest happenings and to keep tabs on my friends and family. But I can’t also deny the fact that being on social media most of the time drains me especially when I delve into discussions about politics and current events. Don’t get me wrong. I love looking at the two sides of the coin and learning about certain matters from different points of view. It’s just that too much of it can be overwhelming that I just have to retreat a little.
Limiting my time on social media has helped me focus on other things like learning new skills or rediscovering an old hobby. It also encouraged me to look for ways of using it more effectively. Instead of aimlessly browsing my feed, I search for specific topics which I’m interested in such as marketing, finance, health, job or money-making opportunities, and many others. Using social media in this manner has helped me avoid toxicity and find ways to be productive somehow.
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There you have it, lovelies. These are just some of the ways I cope with stress during quarantine. I would love to learn some of yours. Don’t forget to also eat healthily and stay hydrated. Share this to your friends. Until next time. See you!
