A global pandemic is no retreat
What a strange few weeks we have experienced. It has taken me over two weeks to feel settled enough to even write anything meaningful. I have spoken with many friends, clients, and fellow practitioners, who have been experiencing similar patterns of anxiety, lack of focus, and frustration. It seems that the new and unknown territory we’re wading through causes us to experience a feeling of chaos. The thing is, isn’t the future always unknown? Certainly, our usual, day-to-day lives have a routine and familiarity to them that helps to keep us grounded, and more able to cope with the unexpected.
As I’m finding new routines, I’m starting to feel a bit more productive. As a small business owner, the learning curve has been steep, figuring out when to close, how long to close, understanding the disaster relief programs, how to stay in touch with clients, planning for new practice procedures when we go back to the clinic, furthering my education on immune support during this pandemic, and more. The large number of emails, phone calls, text messages, and webinars has been supportive and informative, but also distracting and overwhelming. It’s hard to stay focused, when there is always another thing to pay attention to. I’m the type of person who craves a quiet retreat. One would think that physical distancing would create such an opportunity, but in my experience, a global pandemic is no retreat!
That said, I have enjoyed sleeping a bit longer in the mornings, eating more regular meals, and taking more moments here and there to think. As many of you know, I am a crafts person of all things wooly. This time period has made me somewhat more productive, but not necessarily more creative. I have found that the action of doing something repetitive in nature has a calming effect on my nervous system.
This doesn’t seem to be a time to achieve big things–rather, we need to find joy in all of our small accomplishments: a clean closet, a healthy meal, a fresh-baked loaf of bread, a pot of chicken stock, a repotted plant, a completed craft project.
Wishing all of you good health and safety during this difficult time.
How to support your immune system, during the time of COVID-19
Create a daily routine
Maintain consistent meal times
Keep bed and wake-up times consistent
Get daily exercise
Avoid sticky foods, such as gluten, dairy, and sweets
Emphasize hydrating foods, such as soups, stews, and porridges
Eat more warming foods, and limit cold foods
Eat mindfully
Breathe in fresh air whenever possible
Meditate
As always…the best preventive medicine is made up of healthy habits and nutritious food!
Supportive symptom management of COVID-19
A few days ago, I watched a webinar put on by Janice Hadlock, an acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine professor. She shared a technique that appears to greatly calm the symptoms of COVID-19. It is a simple, self-applied procedure that you can learn here.