a sea of uncertainty
Hi friends.
Are you all doing okay? These are some weird times aren’t they? As a person who is both accustomed to spending a lot of time alone, and a person who often prefers to spend time alone, I know that these times aren’t as comfortable for others as they are for me.
I’m not a professional counselor and I certainly don’t pretend to know how to advise or guide another fragile heart. I know that I have spent years working through things with trusted therapists and practitioners, and in times of stress and trauma, these individuals are invaluable. I am amazed that we live in a world where if you can’t find an individual you trust immediately and would like to reach out, there are digital and app based resources available. I hope you’ll choose help if you’re feeling this kind of stress or trauma right now.
Here are a few things that I do when I’m starting to feel uncertain. These may work for you, and they may be the exact opposite of what you need.
write your thoughts down. even if they aren’t coherent or linear. the practice is not for anyone else. it exists simply to remain connected to your own experience instead of external information. you can keep it or you can burn it/recycle it.
create a little bit of luxury in your day. I have never been a person of certain means so my luxury is a very different thing than someone with more money. extra soft textures, inexpensive candles lit around a room - even in the daytime, a 30 minute soak in the tub, a slowly prepared meal and a glass of wine if you go for that sort of thing.
move your body. we are made to move. all of our systems function better if we are using them. I’m not advocating a massive work out regimen. I hate working out. just a walk around the neighborhood for 20 minutes is enough to get your physical body back in touch with your mind. if you’d rather not go outside, you can hit up youtube for a beginning yoga or pilates or gentle stretching video. no fancy equipment needed. when I was touring, there were entire workouts designed for traveling businesspeople to accomplish in their actual hotel rooms.
take care of your nutrition. believe it or not, eating well is intensely important for emotional health. access to food can be a challenge, but if you’re able to take a little bit more time or put in a bit of effort, you can help yourself. folks with families and demanding schedules, I know it’s not easy at all. at the very least, take a vitamin D supplement. I am on 5000IU of vitamin D every day (because I am essentially a white walker), but your doctor or health professional can recommend the best dosage for you. eat fruits and vegetables. and feel free to ask someone who actually knows what they are talking about. I’m just here talking about what I do. Which is: Vit D, Vit C, Magnesium, St. John’s Wort, and a lot of vegetables because I dislike fruit.
reach out. even those of us most comfortable with solitude do need to interact. I speak with several of my friends every single day via text message, and I am lucky to have a husband who likes to talk with me. if one of your friends or loved ones needed support during this time, you’d offer it, so don’t forget that the same exists in reverse. and I’m one of them if you need me! It’s a lot more manageable to weather storms like this together and we’re lucky to live in an age of technology that makes us accessible to each other even if we aren’t able to be in the same physical space.
In any case, I hope you all remain safe and healthy in the coming months. We’ll be here, planting seeds and readying the fields for the flowers of summer. If we can help you with anything, please reach out. And we’ll see you down the road.
