Written by: Maddie Kohler
This is not another “What You Should be Doing in Quarantine is____” article. You know where your time can best be spent. The key here is are you acting on that knowledge? We know we should eat vegetables, but how many of us take the time to prepare them and incorporate them into our diet (greens powders do not count)? How often do we actually take 10 minutes of our day to go outside? Are we taking time to thoughtfully self-reflect or are we just journaling when we remember? Do you revisit your goals and reflect on what actions you have or have not taken to reach them? Instead of focusing so much of what we “should” do, maybe we can look at what we do know and see if we are genuinely using that information.
Quarantine has challenged our flexibility in virtually every domain: work, relationships, physical activity, hobbies, and self-care. It has forced us to see some truths that might have been easier to ignore in our previous “normal” everyday lives. Without these distractions, we are left with just ourselves. Do you enjoy your own company? Why or why not? What can we do to make YOU the best friend you’ve ever had? This is not to suggest that you need to forget about your friends, but you can gain so much from learning to love yourself as well. In order to radiate positivity, one must exhibit those qualities.
We cannot disguise garbage as rose petals, you cannot hide internal disconnect with outward aesthetics. Maybe we need to really work on self-confidence at this time, maybe we need to reconnect with family, maybe we need to heal old wounds. Whatever it is you know you need, think about what you have genuinely tried, how long you tried it, and what steps did or did not work during this process. If it feels like your life is filled with friction, perhaps it’s that your goals and/or actions are not aligning with the qualities you value. For example, if one highly values honesty and loyalty, yet their work is asking them to deceive clients, there is going to be some internal turmoil from partaking in those actions. If we value confidence and spend most of our time tearing ourselves down, perhaps we can try and notice when we get into those patterns and debunk some of those harsh statements.
Take away: this is a great opportunity to make real change. In choosing self-care, the greatest thing we can do for ourselves is actively take steps to reach our goals. This includes showing up on time, putting in the necessary work to complete your job, and ensuring you are at a place mentally to perform at your best. Often, what keeps us from taking action in pursuing and reaching our goals, is the thought that we “don’t know” what to do. Take the time to truly reflect on the situation and your experience within it. In taking the time to truly reflect on the situation and our experiences within it, we can critically think of the answer. While everyone is emphasizing self-care, truly assess what you need outside of a face mask. Do you need to work on honesty? Integrity? Commitment? Whatever it may be, you have a choice to work on it. Happiness is a habit. Choose to make an effort, even when you only have 30% to give, give that entire 30%. You deserve to show up for yourself, even in a pandemic.
DU Sport Psych 