I hope you are all keeping well. It has been almost two months now and I sense we are now on a plateau of coping and adjusting in the midst of this global pandemic - lockdown. COVID-19 outbreak has forced us all to reconfigure our lives, and our habits. I have categorized this situation simply as 4 stages of change:
1 - In the beginning, change may have looked interesting - you got to sleep in much later, you need not fight the traffic or waste time travelling to work, spend more time being more productive and focused, bonding with your family and pets, the novelty of ordering your food online, etc.
2 - Weeks later, change becomes somewhat scary, and you would have felt anxious, worried, fear settling in as you think about losing your job, your income, family - it could be that they are far from you (like me) or they are hovering around you 24/7 and it feels like you don't have room to breathe or rest, and maybe you may have felt frustrated as what you would normally do becomes constricted - walking around freely without a mask, no hanging out with your family and friends, no going out to shop or window shop anytime you felt like it, no hanging out in your compound to just feel the air and quietness for a moment, etc.
3 - And now, now you are probably more accepting of what is happening within and around you. You may have spent more time reflecting on whats important in your life, what needs to change, perhaps a toxic situation or emotion needs to be looked into and released, and you may have found ways to stay positive, have some self-care and mindful moments. You may have implemented these new daily routines, settling in, eating healthier, getting comfortable for now, and social interactions have improved - virtually; this is what defines your new norm.
4 - Lastly, you and I will continue to adjust more fluidly whatever comes our way as we have already been doing just that for the past 2-3 months - adapting. We have been doing it well and we will continue to do well, to face it, manage it and re-calibrate as often as we need to!
Continue to evolve and transform as we face each day. Do remember that what does NOT change is who we are, our intrinsic, our values, our beliefs and morals. You are still who you are and our new normal is not stripping you of those!
