Chorlton Good Neighbours: Positive Living Lockdown Tips
Our life coach Debra has been speaking with 20 of the regular members of the Positive Living Group, to get their ideas on how they are coping with the current situation. Here are the ideas that people have suggested which you may find useful as well.
- Keep to a good daily routine, try to get up at the same time, eat meals at the same time and keep a sense of normality at this time.
- Worrying holds no value and serves no purpose, keep busy instead.
- Limit the amount of news you watch, check it out once or twice to get the information you need then switch it off, and find something else to occupy your mind.
- Get as much sleep as possible to feel re-freshed each day.
- Set yourself a little positive job to do each day, it can be really small, but you will feel good achieving it each day.
- It is good to find ‘a bit of life going on’ each day by watching the birds, seeing the cat in the garden, watching people walking by, hearing children play etc.
- Listen to a radio programme with people talking and discussing things, that way you can feel a part of the conversation and can respond in your head.
- Keep a good sense of humour. Each day find a joke to tell one person and get them to tell you one back.
- Keep very connected to others via all the means available to you. For some, a chat on the phone is perfect, others are loving video chatting where they see their distant family sat at the kitchen table and they feel a part of it.
- Catch up with old papers and magazines, and read articles that you have planned to read for ages.
- Currently many people are really enjoying getting on top of cleaning jobs. There is significant value in gaining ‘control’ over the things you can and leaving the rest in the lap of the gods.
- Similar to the above, de-cluttering is proving a huge time filler at present. Resist the temptation to take stuff out of the bags you have already filled to go to the charity shop!
- Keep physically active. Many people are seeing this as a fabulous strategy. For those not leaving the house at all, do two or three short bursts of exercise a day at home to feel up-lifted. Stick to the same time each day.
- For those able to get out for some daily exercise, walk and see what is new in the world; a new flower in the garden, notice the birds, listen to the quiet, notice what clouds are forming today.
- Many of the group already practice gratitude every day and consistently praise the benefits it brings. One attendee is reading old gratitude diaries to keep up-lifted.
- Take a break from any technology each day (T.V/Radio too) sit quietly and contemplate the peace, read a book, listen to the wind, take a moment to positively day- dream.
- Do ‘conscious’ T.V viewing. Ask, does this programme bring pleasure, peace, up-lift me, distract me nicely…then make good choices.
- If you have a musical instrument, perfect old pieces that you know and practice new pieces that you can master. One attendee is enriched by her guitar playing and singing.
- Re-visit an old hobby of yours if you are fortunate to have the equipment. Something like drawing we can all have a go at.
- Experiment with cooking. All those recipes that you haven’t previously had the time to get around to.
- Think through your thoughts with a sense of purpose. If you need a pick up then sit and think through the end of this confinement. Say you will get through this, who will I then see, what activities will I be back underway with. Focus from time to time on the next step out of this to help keep you inspired and add in some additional plans to look forward to.
- Equally, many are very good at being fully present, in the moment and one say’s each day…. ‘and this too will pass’
- Of the jobs we feel we should do but can’t be bothered. Chunk it down to tackling it for 15minutes each day; it will be done before you know it.
Take care everyone and let us know if you have any other ideas we could pass on.
Chorlton Good Neighbours 