Looking after your well-being. Lockdown number 2

The title of this article couldn’t be one sentence. It would imply that there was an easy way to have good well-being during a global pandemic. But, it just isn’t possible really, is it?

Ahead of a community group I was recently hosting, I decided to consider my own well-being. I knew I may regret opening this can of worms, but in the vein of practising what I preach with clients, it's an ethical requirement that I look after me too.  Plus it's just nice!

In my current reality, the UK has been in and out of lockdown since March. It is now November. Within my local area, we were granted time off for 'good behaviour' in August and I managed to catch up with friends and family plus squeeze in a holiday. But, apart from that short stint of what felt like day release from prison, I have generally been in lockdown.

I have been through the waves. The phases of highs and lows in mood. Generally, I have found ways to cope fairly well most of the time. Crunch times have of course happened. Overall, though, I am kind of settled into a relative reality which many others currently are too.

My day to day mind is occupied with work mostly. I am an easily led workaholic (all ex-teachers are), so it is too easy for me to overdo it. Setting up a private practice during these times has meant having lots of time to invest. The flip side is, I don’t stop or find it hard to see when I have done enough.

Having no fixed times to be ‘at work’ means I can work whenever and, therefore, can work all of the time. I really enjoy my work but I can get frustrated, impatient and mentally exhausted from it, too. When I had breaks in my routine, like in pre-Covid days, I would see family and friends, run errands or just go out. Now, I might visit my garden in a day. My vitamin D levels must be at minus levels by now!

My house looks lovely, though. Its been fully re-decorated, as in, I have painted everything I can: coffee tables, front door, chests of drawers, pretty much most things that are stationary. However, for this lockdown, I’ve run out of things to paint. My box of paints now sits alone, crying quietly in a small dark room somewhere.

In February (the month before the outside world ended), I bought some makeup on the way back from a holiday. I did ever so slightly get excited and buy myself a large dose of retail therapy. Feeling all topped up with goodness from being away from home, I splurged on some foundation. The makeup sits unused now in a lovely new make-up bag; in this little bag of awesomeness, that foundation that I treated myself to is sitting alone, unloved.

As for bras, let's not go there. 

So, overall, for well-being, I guess as ever, there is much room for improvement.