10 Steps to Finding Wellness in the Time of Covid-19

10 Steps to Finding Wellness In times of the Pandemic and Important Social/Institutional Change

This time, since the start of Covid-19 has brought up many emotions, feelings, responses, and both conscious and unconscious ways of acting that for many of us are unprecedented even when compared to past traumas or struggles.  And yet, as with all trauma the real struggle is to assimilate the experience and expand into it rather than contracting around it.

To integrate the emotions from distressing events allows us to grow in ways that perhaps we would not subject ourselves to otherwise, thus creating opportunity.

I want to be clear that I am not saying, “this is happening for a reason”, or “lets just find the good in this”, because while this may be true for some which I totally respect, I am more commenting on the lack of choice we have but to go through this experience of a pandemic.

And now, perhaps just as acutely, coupled with the pandemic, we are also experiencing the important work that needs to be done to examine how we see the world and our personal and collective relationships within that. There is not a totally clear path directing how to proceed, there are questions of whether we can and should trust our healthcare system, other institutions and our government, and we are still unsure what this means for the future of society, schools, gatherings, and life as we knew it.

So, this is A LOT all at once and in fact, many people are experiencing way more than this with economic instability, prejudice, racism, housing instability, food insecurity, inability to teach children and work at the same time, substance abuse, domestic abuse and the list goes on.

So, how can we help ourselves right now?  What are things we can do to support our mental, spiritual, physical, hormonal, and immune health right now and into the future?  How do we respond to the trauma of a pandemic with the call to examine our deeply rooted belief systems and institutions, with more compassion, holism, kindness and honesty to ourselves?  We all deserve to feel a sense of peace within, even amidst the huge question marks that lay ahead. Perhaps right now, that is what is means to be ‘Well”.

1. 5 minutes daily stretching, To feel Lighter

   Touch your toes and take 10 deep breathes into your low belly. Be sure to let your neck hang completely relaxed.  Then, Lay on your back and pull your knees in to your chest and take 5 deep breathes rocking side to side, you can put a pillow under your head.  Then, on hands and knees contract and extend your spine with your breathe guiding you to 5 deep breathes and I recommend an audible exhale with no judgment as to the sound that comes out.:)  Then you can end with child’s pose with knees wide, forehead to the floor, hands open and pressing into the ground/floor, and take 10 deep breathes into your low belly.

   As you breathe you can imagine breathing light pink or white light moving through your whole body from the tip of your head to the tips of your toes filling your being with light.

2. Gratitude/ Emotional Release Time.

   You can journal this or just have a conversation with yourself or someone else to find 1 thing to be grateful for, even on the harder days.  Put one hand over your heart and one hand over your belly button, and say, “Today, I am grateful for… then take a deep breath into the thought, hold the breath 3 seconds and release it slowly.”

   If you feel angry, guilty, frustrated, sad or other emotions when thinking about gratitude, that is totally normal and totally okay.  You can choose come back to this exercise later in the day. You can also just sit in the emotion you are feeling and write about it, call a friend, family member, therapist or other and talk about it.

   The full spectrum of emotions is present in this time of collective trauma and finding space to accept where we are at in a given moment without judgment of ‘how we should feel’, can take the power out of even the strongest emotions so that they have space to move through us without defining us.

3. Green Veggies

   Eating 3-5 servings of green veggies daily.  These veggies support our lymphatic system, immune system, circulatory system, and then supply us with the necessary vitamins and minerals to support our bodies natural stress response.

4. Take your vitamins

   I recommend 1 methylated multivitamin, a digestive enzyme, adrenal support and/or extra vitamin B6. More specific recommendations can be made based on individual case

5. Drink 1-2 Tbsp. Apple cider vinegar

   Mix 1-2 Tbsp. ACV (raw, unfiltered, organic), with ½ lemon squeezed with 1 glass water per day on empty stomach at the beginning or end of the day.

6. 10 minutes sunlight per day

   Find a quiet place to sit, read, walk, jog, hike and allow the sunlight when available to reach your skin. This energizes our bodies with vital yang energy, lifts the moods, and provides essential vitamin D3.

7. 20 minutes brisk walking

   Moving our bodies aerobically releases endorphins, which act as ‘happy chemicals’ for the brain, move our lymph, which supports immunity, and generates energy and motivation in our minds to feel capable and strong.  This is recommended 2-5x per week.

8. Laugh

   Talk to someone, read a book, watch or listen to something that makes you laugh.  Laughing has a powerful impact on our health and wellness by bringing us into the present.  Even in the midst of immense challenge finding this space to be in the moment and laugh can have a profound impact on neurotransmitters in the brain, and relaxation in the body.

9. Water

   Drink 2-3L water per day to support our immune health, and to support our bodies stress response. Adequate hydration is key to staying well.

10. Get Acupuncture.

    Acupuncture has a powerful effect on the body’s cortisol rhythms, and on how we store stress in our physical body. This stored stress can lead to pain, discomfort and inflammation, which affect our mood, sleep and overall feeling of wellness.  Acupuncture moves stagnant energy both emotional and physical and creates more space to process the world and experiences and emotions as they come.

Gentle Reminder…

To be “well” does not necessarily mean to be “happy”.  The two go great together but they may not always come together, and that is okay.  Having a basic routine in place to consistently support our wellness, and physical and mental health can empower us in a time of immense change and uncertainty to find Wellness.

- Brooke Niss, L.Ac.