While stress is not a novel problem, the global pandemic we’re living through has catapulted us all into such a unique (and stressful) space, that many of our tried and true stress management plans aren’t working any more. I’ve heard from so many people – clients, friends and acquaintances – about how they’re struggling despite doing “all the right things.”
“I’m so overwhelmed.”
“Why am I hungry all the time?”
“I’m so tired but I don’t know why.”
“Will I ever go to Trader Joe’s again?”
“I’m so f***ing tired of Zoom.”
If any of this sounds familiar, know that you’re not alone and that there’s a good reason why your old stress management plan isn’t working. We are all living a new, undesired normal, which means that we’re in a new phase with lots of unknowns. These unknowns make planning almost anything feel more stressful. The pandemic has forced us to develop new routines when we feel like the rug has been pulled out from under us, which can be especially challenging when transitions and things keep changing. Right when you think you’ve gotten the hang of a new routine, you have to change things up again—all with the underlying anxiety related to all the unknowns and the inability to form solid plans.
It truly can feel like a rollercoaster, but thankfully there are things you can do to help yourself feel less stressed and more in control:
- Identify struggles: think about where you’re having an especially hard time and pick one thing to focus on to help you feel more in tune with yourself.
- Establish a healthy morning and evening routine: I love guiding my clients in finding healthy ways to start and end their days so that they feel grounded and achieve restful sleep.
- Eat for balance: there’s no question that eating healthfully plays a key role in our cognitive and emotional function and health.
- Exercise for energy: exercise is a great way to boost one’s mood and overall health.
If you want to learn how to navigate transitions mindfully and build healthy new habits, I’d love for you to join me in my free 3-day live series (held on May 26 through May 28, 2020) on self-care tools to help you navigate stressful, transitional times. You can sign up here.
Keep in mind that you can start small – even with just one of these suggestions – and build from there! If you want more tips for managing stress and anxiety, check out my book The Little Book of Game Changers: 50 Healthy Habits for Managing Stress & Anxiety where I share inspiring insight from many field experts.
As always, you can also connect with me on social media to learn more. I’m on IG @jesscording, Twitter @JessCording, and Facebook @JessicaCordingNutritiion.
Prefer audio? You can listen to the podcast episode related to this topic.