Put on your own lifejacket first, they say. In order to help your kids remain calm and positive through lockdown, you need to look after your own mental health.
Lockdown can be an emotional rollercoaster. Check out our list of ideas to help you look after your mental wellbeing. Make sure to browse through our other Lockdown blogs for great tips and ideas on how to keep the whole family happy and healthy during this time.
Get Out For Your Daily Exercise
Getting out once a day for an hour's exercise will help you stay fit and get some vitamin D, both of which will boost your immune system and decrease anxiety. Even if it's just a quick walk around the block and back again, it's better than nothing.
Keeping active during the day will help you sleep better at night too, and getting a good night's rest will enable your body to better fight off infections.
Doing some outdoors exercise will help you fight off cabin fever, and it's a good idea to get out and see other people on the street, even if you do have to maintain a two-metre distance from them all!
Keeping fit and active is important at the best of times, but particularly now when the condition our bodies are in could really make a difference to our ability to fight off the infection if we get it.
Make An Effort To Stay In Touch With Family And Friends
If you're feeling depressed you might find yourself shying away from reaching out to loved ones outside the home for support. People do want to hear from you. Reach out to them. Try Zoom or Houseparty for some face-time or just send a Whatsapp to check-in with a friend.
Limit Your News Intake
Checking the news for updates every half hour isn't going to make lockdown end any faster. Continually exposing yourself to depressing stories can be detrimental to your mental health.
Limit yourself to checking the news at set times each day. Perhaps you just tune in once a day, filter out the most relevant news and leave the rest.
Let's face it, what's the point in scrolling through pages of disturbing content if it's not immediately relevant to lockdown and the virus? What's the use in reading the same data on the virus day in day out, when the only thing we can do to protect ourselves and others is doing what we're already doing?
Limit your social media use as well. Snooze accounts that only post negative material and check out accounts such as @simplepolitics who round up all the latest news on COVID-19 and present what you need to know in bullet points. If they haven't posted it, you don't need to know it.
Keep A Journal
If you don't already keep a diary, now's a great time to get into the habit. Not only is it a great stress-reliever but it will also be interesting to look back on when this is all just a distant memory.
Journalling is a great way to keep anxiety in check. Journalling helps us ground ourselves in the present moment and identify how we are feeling and why we are feeling that way. it allows us to peacefully evaluate our day, set intentions for the day ahead, and focus on gratitude for what we have and what we've experienced.
Try journaling as soon as you get up, as a form of meditation. It's best to try and write freely, without judging what you're putting down.
You can also journal at the end of the day, reflecting over the day and setting down what you'd like to experience the next day. It doesn't really matter when you write, but it is best if you can to set aside a peaceful time when you can just focus on your journal uninterrupted.
This journal is for your eyes only, so let yourself be totally free with what you write, with no shame.
You can always edit your journal in the future and share it. Read Daniel Defoe's A Journal of the Plague Year for inspiration!
Set A Daily Lockdown Routine
Setting a daily routine is a great way to create a sense of stability in our lives. Having a daily routine helps us to be more productive and more relaxed.
Time seems to pass faster when it's structured, whereas having no routine at all can lead to days stretching on endlessly.
Setting a routine helps us break our days up into manageable chunks of activity. Where there is no structure we can end up wasting time by allowing activities to drag on for hours, whereas allotting a set time for it frees up time to do other things later.
If you work from home setting a routine is particularly important. Formalising a routine with the family will prevent the kids from distracting you while you work, and help you to avoid procrastination or getting distracted yourself.
This should prevent your work from taking up more time than it needs to so that you can still have time to relax in your day.
Kids thrive on the security routine brings. They can find it comforting to know when they will be eating, when they'll get to go out and when you'll all be sitting down together to watch movies.
Kids that go to school will be used to structured days, and routine actually brings more freedom and leisure time to your day than going without.
The routine doesn't have to be the same every day. You can plan your day the night before or when you get up. When the world lacks stability, ramp it up at home.
Have A Daily Wind-Down Ritual For Yourself
Every daily routine should involve a wind-down ritual. This could be a shared moment with your family or one that you do by yourself.
Maybe your favourite way to wind-down at the end of the day is with a glass of wine in the bath. A few pages of a good book, a tub-full of bubbles and the bathroom door firmly locked.
Maybe it's a joint routine, with a Disney movie, snacks and cuddles on the sofa. Whatever it is that allows you to truly chill out at the end of the day, make sure you do it, every single day.
Be Easy On Yourself
Don't demand too much of yourself. None of us has lived through a global pandemic or experienced lockdown before.
We're all still adjusting, and everyone will adjust differently. Don't feel like you have to spend every day baking bread in a frilly apron or making a different variety of slime for every day of the month. The house doesn't have to be spotless and the kids don't always have to be engaged in some insta-worthy creative activity.
Be easy on yourself. You're doing your best, and each day can be better than the last. No one's keeping score on how well you cope with lockdown and how productive you're being.
We Want Your Photos!
Do you have a photo you are happy to share that would improve this article?
Living in Brighton with her three-year-old daughter, Eleanor loves exploring new environments and discovering fun activities to do together. A cinema enthusiast, she enjoys going to see the latest kids' movies and indulging in some popcorn. She also loves visiting London to explore new places to eat and exciting activities. In her spare time, this person is training to become a complementary therapist and has a keen interest in mindfulness
1) Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising. We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the Buy Now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published but we cannot guarantee that on the time of reading. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
2) At Kidadl, we strive to recommend the very best activities and events. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability. Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
3) Because we are an educational resource, we have quotes and facts about a range of historical and modern figures. We do not endorse the actions of or rhetoric of all the people included in these collections, but we think they are important for growing minds to learn about under the guidance of parents or guardians.