Self Care & Wellness

As of 11/23/20

Undoubtedly this time will be stressful for many, with limited access to friends and family members and the global situation changing on a daily basis. Here are some strategies we can use to help minimize our stress during this time!

• Keep in touch with friends and family! Remember, everyone’s in this together. Touch base regularly with family through phone calls, FaceTime, Skype or even video games. Have virtual happy hours with your friends and other WFH colleagues.
• Use this time to learn stress management techniques
  • Meditation- try apps such as Calm, Headspace, Insight Timer
    • Headspace provides free meditations: https://www.headspace.com/covid-19
  • Podcasts such as Meditative story and Anxiety Slayer
  • Yoga
  • Journaling
  • Crafting- painting, drawing
  • Books: Many public libraries are closed, but if you have a library card, you can access free digital books, audiobooks, and magazines at https://www.overdrive.com/apps/libby/
  • Check out 3rd year GW Med Student Melissa Greenblatt’s page on instagram for other tips: https://www.instagram.com/b.well_bymel/

Limit unnecessary exposure to the news. Unfollow the unnecessary news accounts on Instagram, Twitter, and the like. Staying informed is important, try to limit news to once daily, for example either in the morning or evening. A good way to do this is to ask your “hey google” or “Alexa” to update you on the news to get a rundown of the latest headlines without feeling overwhelmed. Additionally, make sure you are getting your news from reliable sources such as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or World Health Organization (WHO) or this guide!

As of 12/15/20

• Gyms are open in DC, Maryland and Virginia with capacity limits.

Try creative alternatives to fitness routines! The alternatives include body weight exercises, using household items as weights, yoga, and dancing to name a few.

• If it is safe and feasible, exercising outdoors (walking, hiking, biking) while maintaining 6ft of distance from others is a great way to keep moving

• Many gyms and exercise studios, including locally owned gyms in the DC area, are offering free online workouts that anyone can access. You do not need workout equipment to complete these exercises. 

• Click this link for a list of free movement resources available online!

Here are some online recommendations:

Urban Boxing DC is offering free online workouts (https://urbanboxingdc.com/online-classes/) 

Bluebird Sky Yoga is streaming both free and for-purchase classes (http://www.bluebirdskyyoga.com/schedule) 

202Strong is a DC area fitness group that is live streaming free daily workouts (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbNeLAXJf_Xb3h-ASuaJh4A) 

Peloton has extended its free trial offer to 90 days. Spinning/workout equipment not needed (https://www.onepeloton.com/digital/checkout/digital-90d)

OrangeTheory is uploading daily 30-minute workout videos to its YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2mPx7FrMwWJ1utQEOX9z9w)

24 Hour Fitness app contains on-demand workouts and premium content for free (https://24go.co/24/sms?_branch_match_id=748659451863056276)

CorePower Yoga is offering free streaming live classes each day (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4z1_0UdNR70GZE9eGuDY_VlQBE78ebQ8&)

Nike has made all Nike Training Club Premium workouts free: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nike-training-club/id301521403

Many Youtube channels provide quality free content:

BodyFit by Amy has a series of workouts ranging from 5-45 minutes and has multiple categories including kettlebell, bodyweight, and dumbbells:  https://www.youtube.com/user/BodyFitByAmy

As of 12/15/20

• Grocery Shopping Safety:
  • Limit your trips to the grocery store by taking advantage of online grocery shopping services. However, if you do go, make sure to wear a mask or other face covering, use disinfecting wipes on shopping carts, maintain safe distance between yourself and other shoppers, avoid touching your face and unnecessary items in the grocery store. Lastly, be sure to wash your hands with warm soap and water for a full 20 seconds before AND after you shop!
  • Practice safe grocery shopping:
    • From Washington Post: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4aoYr5cnu0
    • On Safe Grocery Shopping, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKx-F4AKteE
    • From Mayo Clinic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXzhVUslHeM   
  • Currently there is no evidence to suggest that handling food/groceries is associated with COVID-19. The risk of getting sick from COVID-19 from eating or handling food is considered by the CDC to be very low: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus /2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/food-and-COVID-19.html
• Cooking at Home:
  • Make an inventory of what you already have at home. Use recipe builders such as Supercook (https://www.supercook.com/#/recipes) where you can plug in the ingredients you already have at home to make creative, yummy meals!
  • There are a lot of great free resources out there to keep cooking. Here are a few below:
    • https://cooking.nytimes.com/topics/self-quarantine-recipes
    • https://smittenkitchen.com/
    • https://www.budgetbytes.com/
    • https://www.allrecipes.com/recipes/
• Restaurant Dining:
  • With many restaurants beginning to open up, eating at home or getting take-out are much safer options and will lower your chance of being exposed to COVID-19. If you are going to a restaurant, make sure they are following safe protocols and try to sit at an outdoor table rather than inside the restaurant: http://www.emro.who.int/nutrition/nutrition -infocus/nutrition-advice-for-adults-during-the-covid-19-outbreak.html
• Nutritional Impact on COVID-19:
  • Diets high in saturated fats, sugars, and refined carbohydrates contribute to the prevalence of obesity and type 2 diabetes, which could place individuals at an increased risk for COVID-19 long-term complications: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih .gov/pmc/articles/PMC7165103/

As of 10/27/20

• Communicate often with loved ones. Online video platforms such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype, and HouseParty can allow you to stay connected with family and friends, even if you cannot see them physically. 
• Tips for working from home (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/19/smarter-living/work-at-home-tips-advice.html) 
  • Get dressed for the day
  • Find a space away from your bed to work
  • Set goals at the start of each day 
  • If you have trouble staying focused, try the Pomodoro technique (https://tomato-timer.com/). Forest (https://www.forestapp.cc/) is also a great app to help you avoid social media when you’re supposed to be working.
• Get together with friends for a socially distanced hang-out such as an outdoor picnic, bike ride, or a trip to the farmer’s market!

As of 05/06/20

• Take the time to explain COVID-19 to your children in a way that is easy for them to understand. Here is a comic that explains coronavirus to kids: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/02/28/809580453/just-for-kids-a-comic-exploring-the-new-coronavirus 
• Reassure your children if they are upset. Let them know that it is okay to feel scared, but that they are safe and loved. Sharing your own feelings with children can be a great way to help them cope.
• Try to create a regular routine. Making a schedule that has time for education, as well as fun activities, can be helpful.

Helping children cope with emergencies: https://www.cdc.gov/childrenindisasters/helping-children-cope.html

As of 11/23/20

• Headspace, a popular mindfulness and guided meditation app is going free for US healthcare professionals until the end of the year (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/headspace-meditation-sleep/id493145008)
• Calm is a company and app that offers free resources, including a stress management workbook to help counterbalance stress (https://www.calm.com/blog/mindfulness-resources)
• Ask for help if you are feeling overwhelmed 
• Make time for yourself and your family 
• Learn to recognize the signs of burnout (depression, irritability, sadness, disconnection from others) 
• Emergency responder tips for taking care of yourself: https://emergency.cdc.gov/coping/responders.asp
• How to cope with stress as a healthcare worker during COVID-19: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/mental-health-healthcare.html
• Tufts has published a list of mental health resources for healthcare workers: https://www.medicalmentalhealth.com/ 
• Resource for dealing with ethical dilemmas during COVID-19: https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/covid-19-ethics-resource-center
• Treat yourself! Mezeh Mediterranean Grill is offering free meals, just DM them on instagram! See all of the other amazing deals for healthcare workers here: https://www.averagesocialite.com/average-socialite/2020/4/1/perks-for-covid-19-healthcare-workers