’Let go of all the purposeless drama, aimless time-wasters, and clutter that keeps getting in our way. It’s time to focus on what matters. ~ marcandangel
How covid-19 saved me
I knew in February 2020 that something had to change in my life. I was not going to be able to sustain the life I led for too long before breaking down again. What is a breakdown? For me, it’s when my mind can’t keep up with my body. When the chronic fatigue and the stress take over and my brain can no longer function. In my world, I call a mental breakdown as a manic state or a psychosis. I invite you to go read my past blogs for more details on symptoms and causes.
In this blog, I want to share what the pandemic allowed me to do. Covid-19 forced me to pause. To actually stop the rat race that was happening in my head, in my life. It forced me to just BE home. Be with myself. Find peace within.
Normal Life before Covid-19
I have a job I love, colleagues and supervisor that I respect and appreciate. I don’t work 60 hours a week or my work isn’t strenuous. I don’t have family obligations that exhaust me. I do not lead a hectic social life. However, something had to change. I knew I didn’t want to live like this for another 15 years, until retirement or worst yet die of a stroke or heart attack because I’m stressed and my body can’t take my anymore.
What did I not want?
I had a minimum 1.5 hour daily commute to work. I went to the gym and exercised with my trainer 3 times per week. I arrived home exhausted in the evenings. I didn’t have the energy, the motivation, the time to spend on projects that empower me like writing, blogging or reading. I felt like I was living in a very daze most weeks.
My downtime was mostly spent on Netflix or Facebook, endless hours of just mind-numbing time wasted. Not very productive. Not very empowering. Not very inspiring nor enlightening.
Did you also feel like that?
…then the pandemic arrived
When covid-19 was first labeled a pandemic, I was extremely anxious and worried for my health but also for the health of my loved ones, most particularly those that are higher risk (my parents for example). I soon recognized that constantly watching or reading the news was creating more stress and anxiety. As soon as I limited my news intake and my time on social media, I noticed a drastic change in my humor, my stress level decreased and I regain a peace of mind. Within days of being home, I felt grounded, calm, peace of mind and serene with the situation.
I thought to myself that in 2040, I do not want to look back on this crucial time in history and be disappointed that I did not take the opportunity to change my life when the World was upside down. The World has been impacted and it will no longer be the same. The Earth is realigning itself. We are seeing so many positive changes during this very surreal and challenging times. For example, the lack of airplanes in the air and cars on the roads have resulted in greenhouse gas and pollution levels going down. The air quality is better and the waters around the world are clearer.
I thought it was the perfect time to work on myself as well and realign myself with my truest values and core beliefs. I thought it was important to focus on positive changes in my life too.
What did that mean for me?
I needed to reassess all parts of my life and make modifications where it no longer aligned with my core values. Focus on what matters most to me. If I needed to make changes in my life, it was time to focus on myself and my personal growth journey.
Work
On the work-front, I was extremely busy and I had to adjust to this new reality of teleworking full-time. I had to find new ways of doing business while also finding my own mental sanity. I consulted with my colleagues and employees on how best to work together and collaborate. We set up weekly team meetings for us to connect together and talk about our lives outside the office. It also serves as catch up time and provide work updates. I also found best practices to manage my workload, be there for my employees and continue delivering on our services and deliverables.
With no more commuting time, preparing for work or dealing with traffic, I automatically gained so much more energy which I never realised how much was spent on all these activities until they were no longer part of my daily routine.
While still starting work at the same time, I can now appreciate waking up a bit later, meditate and do my morning stretches. I manage to do all my morning routine with more ease and flow and less stress and anxiety. It is so refreshing.
Mental, Emotional and Physical Health
I wanted to maintain my healthy lifestyle even when staying at home. I continued with my healthy eating habits. I increased my meditation routine to longer sessions and added more sessions during the span of the day. I started moving daily, either biking, walking or doing yoga or stretches in my living room. I also began napping in the afternoons. These are all so beneficial to my physical and mental health.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, I started weekly therapy sessions. Initially, it was to help me cope with the changes that telework brought to my life, help with my anxiety and stress. Then, my sessions evolved into other aspects of my life, like focusing on my emotional and mental health.
Personal Growth
The last aspect I wanted to focus on was how to continue my personal growth journey, how to stay positive, grateful and at peace with the current reality and also with my life.
I started looking for inspirers, innovators and digital activists to motivate and empower me. I’ve started a routine of listening to motivational podcasts on health, wellness, growth, spirituality and wealth. I’ve committed to spending more time reading and less time watching TV shows or Netflix. I also joined Jay Shetty’s Genius Community with thousands more like-minded people around the world where we exchange on positive thinking, share positive stories and also elevate well-being.
During one of those therapy sessions, I realized I wanted to spend time being creative. I developed this website, started writing blogs and have been more active on Instagram and Facebook on equilibrium – mental wellness page. I’ve found joy in sharing my life story with you. I had always wanted to share my story to give hope to others that are struggling with mental fragility and be an inspiration for them to believe in themselves again.
In this chaotic pandemic, I have found peace. I have found calm and serenity within. I have prioritize what is important and I am so much more content with my life, even if my life isn’t perfect.
In this global pandemic, I found stillness and peace within.
It’s not too late. I invite you to take a moment, pause and reflect on your life, what works, what doesn’t, what you want to continue in your life, what you want to stop doing and what you want to start doing.
