11 Ways to Cope With Self Isolation And Loneliness

All of us hoped 2020 to be better than the year 2019, however, 2020 ended up being anything but expected. One word to sum up the 3 months of 2020 is ‘quarantine’, a word which has been doing round in every single part of the world. With the outbreak of COVID-19, everyone has been advised to stay at home! Cities and countries are on lockdown, work from home policies have been announced, schools and universities are shut down and everyone is at home. So, quarantine or rather self-isolation is just the act of staying indoors, in our homes and keeping ourselves away from others to stop the prevention of any virus.

Whilst this might seem like that much-needed break from work but not leaving the house for an indefinite period is a thought which scares us; in short, we are bored! So, whilst we self-isolate, here are a few things that you can do to keep yourself and your family busy so that the thought of staying at home does not get to you too much. 

With the world of Netflix, amazon prime and Hulu, all your favorite shows are just a click away for you to binge-watch. However, with our daily work, school and everyday routines, it becomes nearly impossible to follow shows, let alone have favorite shows. This is an ideal time to watch your favorite shows and movies to not just catch up on them but to also help you be busy in this self-isolation. If you can’t think of shows then we don’t mind putting forth a  few suggestions; Downton abbey, Genius of the modern world, Game of Thrones, Unorthodox, Breaking bad, The office, Fresh prince of bel air, etc. Just log into your Netflix; quarantine, and chill.

For all those times that you stuffed your closet with anything and everything. For all those times you threw away utensils in the kitchen cupboard, for all those times, you threw stuff in drawers when the guests were coming; now is the time to finally organize all of those drawers, shelves, and cupboards. Give your house a good spring cleaning, throw away all the stuff that you’ve been hoarding for no reason whatsoever. If you need inspiration, log into your Netflix and watch the ‘Marie Kondo’ show to learn about the ways to organize in the most efficient ways.

With our ever-busy routines, we have never found the time to write our thoughts down in journals let alone start our blogs. However, we for sure find ourselves on blogs of other people, getting motivations, recipes or just passing time. This self-isolation period is the best time to put yourself out there. Share your tips and tricks, your daily routines and your thoughts with other people through a blog. Just start small with a WordPress blog and get your friends and family to share their thoughts about it. If, however, you’re not comfortable putting yourself out there then just get an old diary and start writing from day 1 of your self-isolation.

All of us are guilty of watching and saving numerous videos of delicious recipes that we never get around to making. So, in this period of self-isolation just pop open those recipes and start cooking. If you don’t have the best skills to cook or bake, then start from the basics. Open YouTube and look for easy beginner recipes and make cakes, pizzas, pasta or anything that you might be craving for. Remember, it is better to eat home-cooked food than food from outside at this point. Staying safe is the priority and what’s the best way to do that than playing Chef yourself!

If you’ve been wanting to lose weight for a while or have just been planning to get fit but haven’t been able to get around to it; now is the time. Whilst you might not have the best workout machines at home, just know that you can always substitute. Try out morning yoga, cardio exercises, weight lifting with dumbbells, etc. Open YouTube and you will be able to find countless short and long home workout videos for beginners and for experts.

I don’t know about you guys but I have always been keen on learning a new language but have never found the time to be able to do so; self-isolation now provides that much needed time. There are numerous online videos on YouTube, different websites and other online courses that help out beginners to learn new languages. From Chinese to French, from Spanish to Russian, you can learn any language that you’ve been wanting to learn. So, take up a course and polish your skills. Who knows? Maybe next time you watch a Spanish show, you’d know exactly what they are saying without the use of subtitles!

If you want to broaden your horizons and plan to improve your knowledge whilst at home, take up new courses. Different websites online, for instance ‘Coursera’ provide different free and paid courses from the top universities of the world in a vast array of subjects. From law to politics, English to Medicine, information technology to music, this website has you covered. At the end of the course, you receive a mark and a certificate acknowledging that you have completed the said course. You can add these to your CV to make it more impressive and to improve your future job prospects.

This applies to everyone; students, housewives, and professionals. If you find yourself stuck at home, tired of binge-watching all those movies and shows and just want to give your mind an ‘intellectual break; pick up a book. We often find ourselves putting down books on our ‘to read’ list and as students, most of us leave all our readings to the last minute. So, if you want a time pass read then pick the book up or find a pdf online and if you are a student then it's time to get a hand on your reading so when classes resume, you’re on top of your game.

We might not realize this but learning new things can help us to be at peace. It is inevitable to not feel bored and frustrated in times of isolation and therefore your mind will need new ways to keep itself busy and more importantly; sane! Pick up a hobby that you might have had for a while or pick up a skill that you’ve been wanting to learn. From painting to video editing, from learning a new instrument to knitting, you need to roll up your sleeves and learn new things. Not only will this keep you busy but will help you be productive.

While this might seem like an odd suggestion but with the covid-19 outbreak, one of the main advice is to keep your hand sanitizer on you 24/7. However, to our dismay, in most places, hand sanitizers are running out. So, if you want to save on that buck, want to know that the product you’re using is pure and just don’t want the hassle of going to the market then just make your sanitizer at home. There are numerous videos online and the basic ingredients are; isopropyl alcohol, Aloe Vera gel, and tea tree oil; ingredients that are easily and readily available.

Skin breakouts due to stress, zero time on our hands and coffee consumption are a routine issue. But with the work stress on a low, a push back on the coffee consumption and certainly more time on our hands; this is the best time to give much-needed attention to our skins! So, make a routine and start paying attention to your skin to stop the breakouts and have that much desired subtle soft skin. Watch online videos, make new face masks, get homemade and organic products to put on your face and finally allow your skin to breathe.

So, whilst we sit at home, wondering when we’ll be allowed to return to our normal routines, this is the ideal time to get back to doing everything that our routine did not allow us to do. From binge-watching to exercising, from learning new skills to learning about different subjects, this is the ideal time to let yourself grow intellectually whilst at home. Relax, sleep and spend some quality time with your children and family. Let planet earth have its much-needed break from pollution and the everyday rush of human lives. Let's all pray that we stay happy and sane in this time of self-isolation, to move to better and bigger things soon!