Life suddenly got a little wacky for all of us didn’t it? and it happened so fast that most of us have been left with tons of stress, anxiety and fear of the unknown. Not really knowing what to do or how to handle it, it becomes hard to be productive or get anything done. Let alone feel like things are going to be okay. It is an uncertain time and that uncertainty can drive us into bad habits or anxious feelings. If this sounds anything like what you’re experiencing right now, keep on reading because I am going to tell you a few things that have helped me during this quarantine.

I am most definitely experiencing the ups and downs of this whole situation, I try to take each day as it comes and go from there. It has been such a drastic change and admittedly, right now I have more hard days than days where I feel like I’m in flow, content and happy. I have noticed that these 4 things are present on the good days and I want to share them with you. Something to keep in mind is that not everything that works for me is going to work for you, just like with anything else, we have to try new things to figure out what we are into and what is helpful to us. Also, keep in mind that taking too much on during a stressful time like this, can be counter productive, so please be gentle with yourself as you navigate through this new normal.

MEDITATION

Meditation is a practice I found later in life but has been a constant through my late 20’s and until now. I find that taking the time to be still and focus on breathing (the life force) is one of the key pillars for my well being. Meditation helps clear the mind of clutter, it centers and brings you clarity. You become an observer, return to the present moment and into ourselves to connect to our inner peace. It’s not always an easy practice, some days the mind wants to run free, or we are stressed and fearful of the future and can’t focus, this is when we need it most. It is a PRACTICE that I find indispensable to my peace of mind during this quarantine.. There are two iPhone apps I use for guided meditation, they are Headspace and Calm both are great options if you want to start meditating right now. Headspace has released a lot of free content created for people that are having a hard time during this pandemic, I encourage you to try it because it makes a huge difference for me everyday.

MOVE YOUR BODY

If I could only pick ONE of these suggestions to give you today, it would be this one. Move your body. You have the power to change your mental state right now. I’m not kidding, when you move your body, you change your mind. I learned that from one of my mentors in self development and believe it in my bones because I experience it every day during this quarantine and have experienced it countless times before. When you move your body and get your heart rate up, you change the chemical reactions in your brain. I have had some difficult days the past month and being able to exercise has gotten me through, as I start moving my body I remember how much I love it, I become less stressed, less anxious and can even breathe better. You can go for a walk for 30 mins, a bike ride, lift some weights, go for a run, stretch or do some yoga. You can even jump around in place or dance, literally anything as long as you’re moving. If you’re not able to move like that, do the best you can with what you have. I promise you this will work, just try it for 30 minutes next time you’re feeling really stressed, anxious or sad.

FIND AN ANCHOR

You’ve probably heard me speak about Rachel Hollis before. She is someone that has helped mold my life into what it is today, if you haven’t read her books, give them a looksie. I am thankful to her and her team for what they do for the community. I recently attended one of her RISE WEEKEND conferences and it truly changed my life, it opened my eyes to so much. Rachel and her team came up with a fun challenge in lieu of the current events. It is called the #next90dayschallenge it is similar to her “5 to thrive” challenge but each week she delivers a lesson to keep you motivated and inspired during the current situation we are facing. The first week it was a talk on perspective, last week about the importance on finding joy in everyday and this week it’s all about habits. It’s been helpful to know that she is there for me (and you, with FREE uplifting content) and that many others are doing this challenge with me. Even if you just join for the weekly lessons, I feel there is tremendous value in this challenge. You can join HERE.

DEDICATED TIME

I like being productive, shooting and connecting with people, it’s what lights me up. My career has been on an up trajectory and I’m so grateful for that but then COVID-19 showed up in our lives and we were forced to stop shooting and distance ourselves. This has been particularly difficult for me because I enjoy the building of my business and the work I do is something I’m very proud of. To go from a good flow with countless scheduled shoots, to postponing all of them has been a hard pill to swallow but as the days go on, I realize that I still need to have structure in my day so that I feel accomplished and productive. What I suggest is carving out X amount of dedicated time in the morning or the afternoon to work on things that could move the needle forward. For example, after I get done with my morning routine (drink water, meditation, gratitude, exercise) I set aside time to work on side projects I haven’t been able to do, or back end work that has been left aside. I decided to finish up the revamping of this very blog, and have also been doing back end work on my website updating my portfolio as well as creating some fun virtual events with the Creative Babes Collective. Those are a few examples of what you can use your dedicated time for, it’s been incredibly helpful to have my “work hours” because I’m still working on my business in other ways.

These are just a few things that are helping me today to keep a good flow in my daily life and keep the stress and anxious feelings under control. When I am consistent with these things I feel more clear headed and peaceful and I can think proactively about what’s going on. It’s been a huge help for me, I hope that they can help you feel better too and again, be gentle with yourself. This will pass and when it does, the fact that you kept working on yourself and the things that matter to you, will pay off big time. Sending hugs, fam.