Mental Health Concerns While Isolating
One of the hardest things about being at home pretty much 24/7 is the lack of inspiration. I get a lot of ideas for my posts from the world and people around me. Now that I have neither, and am confined to my own four walls and property lines, I’m finding it harder to keep up with my writing schedule, either for blogs or anything else. The imagination I thought so abundant is starting to let me down. Ennui is setting in and I struggle for topics, or if I do find one, I discover someone else’s article that articulates it better than I could. Instead of writing original work, I’m sharing the work of others.
While that’s not a bad thing; after all, writers need to support each other, it does mean my publishing cupboards are growing bare. Four weeks of posts dwindled to three, and now it’s hovering only slightly above two. The culprit, more than anything else is lack of inspiration. It takes a gargantuan effort to open up a blog page and start to type, even if what I type is nonsense and garbage, which I fear much of it is lately.
You can say I’m shooting myself in the foot, or that imposter syndrome is rearing it’s ugly head again. The truth is, whether I like it or not, people inspire me. And right now, my life lacks people. Zoom, Facetime, and Facebook Messenger are all well and fine, but they lack the depth of in-person communication. I don’t get to see the nuances and quirks that attract my attention to the people around me (when there actually are people around me!).
The Challenge to Find and Be Positive inspiration
Those who know me are well aware whining and complaining aren’t my typical persona. I don’t 
like those qualities in others, and like them even less in myself. So rest assured, that’s not where this is going. Frustration has set in, yes, but it doesn’t mean I’ll be curling up into a pathetic ball of woe any time soon. It means I need to find other ways to get inspired. Other media to titillate and inspire me to write on one topic or another at length with a little bit of irony, and a pinch of wit.
Sure, there are plenty of things to poke fun at in these bizarre and unprecedented times. (one would be my sudden inability to spell correctly without the help of my loyal and constant friend, spellcheck). But how many times can you poke fun at people hoarding toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and face masks before it simply becomes depressing, especially given how that hoarding is depriving the medical professionals, and other occupations which continue to function in order to keep the rest of us healthy and fed?
For every joke made about someone loading up a pickup truck with suddenly scarce and desperately needed items, there are 10, or even 100’s of stories of people who put themselves at greater risk for want of those items. I, for one can no longer find humor in such selfishness and stupidity. My time here is better served bringing in a few examples of less obvious reasons such behavior is bad for your health.
Looking for Health Guidance From Others
Again, others have written some incredible articles about how fear and desperation weaken your immune system. I can only reiterate what’s been said, and share those which inspire me most. One in particular by Dr. Eugene K. Choi entitled “[COVID-19] One Important Recommendation You May Not be Hearing” is one of those stories, and one I’ve shared via Facebook.
I was thrilled to see many people share it from me as well. In fact, it had about 500 likes when I first saw it. It’s now up to over 2 million! I’m thrilled and honored to be able to share something which is clearly having an impact on a lot of people. It also tells me that sharing contagion, death, and recovery statistics is all well and fine, but people want and need advice on how to protect themselves aside from wearing masks and gloves, and sanitizing every single thing that comes into their homes.
To be honest, I’m not entirely convinced jumping through all those hoops makes that much difference anyway. Though I’ll admit I have been handling every package; every piece of mail; every grocery bag differently as this virus rages on. My doorknobs are sanitized every day (and sometimes several times) because heaven forbid there was something on a piece of mail I touched before opening and closing the door. My hands look like those of a 150-year-old woman despite the constant application of lotion from the tubes and bottles scattered around my house.
Keeping Occupied and Staying Sane
In the long run, I’m more convinced that my daily meditation, my clumsy attempts at yoga, 
attacking the weeds that are quickly taking over my yard, and regular dance nights on Zoom are doing a lot more to keep me healthy. Healthy isn’t just physical, but mental, spiritual, and energetic too. Learning to accept the current situation, imperfect though it may be is truly half the battle. Eating mostly healthy meals (I admit the siren call of sugary snacks pulls me in at times), drinking lots of water, and resting when my body tells me to are the best defenses I have.
If I have to ignore the statistics and news reports at times, it’s a price I’m willing to pay to come out of this healthy, fit, and ready to take my place in whatever the world is going to be on the other side. Being afraid of the unknown isn’t going to alter the fact that things will change. Being angry at some one or some group, and ranting about their ineffectualness isn’t going to change the fact that they did what their conscience guided them to do.
Accepting that everyone is human, and many humans have agendas doesn’t mean I have to buy into those agendas, nor do I have to take a stand when doing so isn’t going to alter the facts one single bit. At this point, even something as seemingly minor as feeling annoyed by a comment or event could too easily snowball into anger or fear. You already know by now those emotions harm no one more than yourself. So why go there?
Making Healthy Choices
When all is said and done, the ones who remained calm in the midst of this storm and took responsibility for themselves are the ones who will be strong, well-rested, and ready to help rebuild what falls apart while everyone is staying home to let the virus die for lack of hosts.
As I see it, we have a few choices right now:
- Pick someone to blame, then rant and rave about how they’ve let everyone down.
- Point fingers at the hoarders and blame them for the lack of necessary supplies.
- Ignore the whole thing and go about your business as if there’s nothing to worry about (and likely infecting a lot of others in the process).
- Hunker down but complain about the isolation, the lack, and anything else you can think of.
- Follow the CDC guidelines and stay home as much as possible, going out only for necessities.
- Reach out to family and friends in a safe, healthy manner to help keep morale up.
- Practice self-care, even to the extreme, with rest, fluids, supplements, a healthy diet, and social distancing until the virus is no longer a threat.
- Adapt.
This isn’t a menu. You don’t have to pick just one. But be careful which ones you do pick, as it isn’t only your own health and future at stake. I might also recommend hiding or unfollowing people who insist on blaming or bashing. Keeping the ugliness out of your home is also self-care. Most of all, remember no man is an island. You need other people, even if how you’re interacting is in the middle of a massive learning curve right now.
In time, it’ll smooth out, and you might just learn something new in the process. I know I’m learning every single day, and I’m grateful for the opportunities. Maybe I’ll even learn to garden successfully before this is over.
About the Author
Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri 
believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income. If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author. And check out her new group, Putting Your Whole Heart Forward.
Be sure to watch this space for news of the upcoming releases of ” Rebuilding After Suicide” and “Sasha’s Journey”.
