​Looking after yourself during the Covid-19 Outbreak 

How may this time affect your physical & mental wellbeing?
During times of change and stress it is essential to look after mind and body:

• Attend to your physical health;
• Get enough sleep;
• Prioritise daily physical exercise, even if you need to exercise indoors;
• Eat healthily and regularly;
• Create a new routine - this is good for your mind and body. 

Create a new routine for yourself.  Work out a plan of your activities.

• Online learning can provide some structure for you. Engage with this whenever you can.
• Try to stick to a schedule with consistent sleeping and waking up times each day.
• Set a few manageable daily goals for yourself.
• Take regular breaks from work to engage with enjoyable activities. Do things that you enjoy.  Carry on with anything that you enjoy, even if it must be online for now.
• You may find that you have more time.
• Are you always meaning to take up something new? Give it a try.
• A crisis can be a time of growth too.
• Create a new routine for yourself.

Social connections - Stay in social contact.
You know who is important to you;

• Stay in touch by Zoom, Facetime, Skype, phone, text, WhatsApp etc.;
• Helping others can help you;
• If you feel able to, reach out to others who may be isolated.

 
Be kind to each other; we are all in this together; help others if you can.

Be positive.
Focus on positive aspects of your life.

• We all still have things in life that we are grateful for.
• Every day write down three things that you are grateful for and spend some time focusing on them. Limit your exposure to stressful material.
• Yes, keeping informed up to a point is useful but try to limit the amount of time you check the news.
• Stick to one or two reliable sources.

Be Mindful – take it a day at a time
​Accept your feelings.

• It is a disorientating time and people will respond in a variety of ways.
• How you feel may also fluctuate over time.
• Sometimes you may feel that you are coping quite well and there may be some positive aspects to the changes you are experiencing.
• At other times, you may feel anxious, confused, afraid, angry, stressed or sad about what is happening.
• These are normal responses to an abnormal situation.
• Try to live in the moment rather than projecting worries into the future.

Ask for Help - it’s OK not to be OK
Other sources of help.
The NHS has produced a list of Mental Health helplines:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mental-health-helplines;
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/;

 
If you need more urgent support:  The Samaritans
Call on 116 123