If you yourself have ever sat down to write a blog or article, you might agree with me that the first sentence is the hardest. I mean, how do you get going on some subjects without some lame idiom or tired phrase? As I sit here and think of lines like, “this has been a hard year” or anything using the phrase “new normal”, how about I tell you what I am really thinking?
I am so fucking tired of the coronavirus.
Seriously.
I am over it. Over. It.
Let’s be clear. I am perfectly agreeable to following the guidelines of the CDC to stop the spread. Washing my hands, not touching my face. Wearing a mask and staying 6 feet away from people who don’t live with me. I am perfectly fine following the rules of the state of Illinois on whether or not my office can be open, or if I need to see clients on Zoom versus in-person, if we can shop, dine out, etc. I take the virus seriously, and I am respectful of my role in stopping the spread.
However.
I still am sooooooooooooo ready for us to move past this and resume our normal lifestyles.
Letting go of your guilt over feeling stressed about Covid
There are a lot of people out there who will try to shame you if you say you are sick of the whole thing. They will say that you should be grateful for what you have. That you should think of the people at the greatest risk of getting very ill if they contract the virus. That you should think of the front-line workers who are bone-weary from saving lives. And those are all empathetic, reasonable feelings.
But what if I told you that you can feel all those things, and still be so tired of the effect this virus has had on our world. Those feelings are not mutually exclusive. And you don’t have to let yourself be gaslighted into believing you are a bad person if you both want life to go back to normal and keep the virus from spreading. You can care about others but still be stressed out or even fed up with the lifestyle changes that we have been through since March 2020. It is 100% ok to be exhausted and stressed about the whole entire situation and it does not make you a bad person.
Covid fatigue is a growing problem as the pandemic continues
If you haven’t heard the phrase Covid fatigue, it refers to the emotional state of being stressed and weary of the pandemic safety measures and the continually changing information and uncertainty that has made up our lives since March 2020. According to an article from UC Davis, “We’re tired of being cooped up, tired of being careful, tired of being scared.” They also state, “facing this fatigue is important for our personal health and for beating the coronavirus that has shaken American life so completely. Many people understand this, which adds to their exhaustion and stress.”
So many of the things that we as humans did for stress-relief have been closed or cancelled for safety reasons. Movies, restaurants, concerts, theatrical productions, parties, festivals, sporting events. In many instances we’ve rallied and found alternatives, but there is no shame in missing the lifestyles we all had. There is no shame in wanting to just go get a massage, or have lunch with friends, or watch a ballgame.
Techniques to do on your own to help manage Covid related stress levels
As a society, we have found creative ways to entertain ourselves during the pandemic, and we shared some of them in a blog post in April about utilizing mental health tools during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this blog post, we introduce several therapeutic tools that you can use at home to fight Covid fatigue.
Art Journaling
We explored art journaling in one of our very first posts. Art journaling is a form of journaling in which you express your thoughts and feelings through art as well as words. Your art journal is for your own expression, for your own viewing, so you can be as creative as you like. It does not matter if you think you have artistic “talent” or are able to create art that is pleasing to someone else. The point of art journaling is for you to openly express yourself with whatever art supplies you feel like using or have on hand. Whether you want to do a pencil drawing, use paints, create something abstract, or bring in other materials for decoupage, is entirely up to you. Your art comes from your heart and your mind, not the need to please others.
Vision Boarding
A vision board is traditionally used to identify your goals and dreams, and help you find both the motivation and a method to achieve them. Even though it might seem counterproductive to create a vision board when life is so uncertain and unpredictable, this is actually the perfect time to think about what you really, truly want out of life. Many clients and friends of mine have done an intense assessment of what is truly important to them since Covid-19 arrived. Many of their goals and dreams have changed. Laying out your vision of how you want your life to look, pandemic or no pandemic, will help you refocus your energy and attention and work on the things that are in your control. Visualizing your goals will help you remember that we will come through this and life will once again be normal.
Forest Bathing
Forest bathing is much more than simply going for a walk in the woods. The name comes from the Japanese phrase shinrin-yoku. According to Time Magazine, “Shinrin in Japanese means “forest,” and yoku means “bath.” So shinrin-yoku means bathing in the forest atmosphere or taking in the forest through our senses.”
The good thing about forest bathing is that you can participate at a variety of fitness levels with minimal equipment other than suitable clothing and shoes. Forest bathing can be done at local forest preserves simply by taking a walk. The difference is in your intention and the conscious connection with the sights and sounds around you. 
Turn your phone on silent and leave it in your pocket or backpack. Study the details of the trees, of an individual leaf, of the trail under your feet. Appreciate the types of plants and animals that you see. Sit quietly and let the forest or woods happen around you. If you go with other people, agree to pause your conversations until you are done. You can take a journal and write about your experience while you are there or after you get back to your car.
You can find local forest bathing meetups in the Chicagoland area including at the Morton Arboretum here in Lisle or through the Forest Bathing Club of Chicago.
Your feelings are yours to feel
No matter what technique you use to help you reduce your stress and feelings of Covid fatigue, the most important thing to remember is that your feelings are yours to feel. Shaming and gaslighting you into distrusting your true emotions is common among acquaintances and even friends and family. But we are not here to tell you that you are wrong to feel a certain way, to question your gut instinct and think that you are wrong or not intuitive to your own mind.
Our goal is to help you navigate these very real, very strong feelings and help you move ahead and live the life you want to live. So please schedule a time to come and talk to us or utilize one of the many services that we offer to help you feel better. Even if you have never considered individual therapy, coaching, reiki, or any of our other services (including our new services like Intuitive Tarot Readings and Akashic Records Readings that we will be exploring in more detail in future blogs), the global pandemic has put an emotional burden on so many people this year.
