SMaRteN’s Top 10 for looking after your mental health during the lockdown

4/13/2020

From the SMaRteN Student Teams

How are you responding to the Covid-19 lockdown? While for some it is a much-appreciated break from the speed and noise of normal life, it brings uncertainty and anxiety to many others. At SMaRteN, the Student Mental Health Research Network, we’ve been thinking about what you can do to look after your mental health.

Sometimes you will know left from right, but often you may wonder what right even is. As we face this global pandemic, most of what we knew seems to not make the cut. Nothing seems right enough, at least not to hold onto. Everything is changing. We have been reminded that we are fragile. In this context, it is only to be expected that you might have to do more than usual to take care of your mental health. The Student Research Team share what they are doing to take care of their emotional well-being at this unusual time:

Switch off social media: with social distancing, now more than ever, social media may feel like a valuable lifeline to the world. However, it is helpful to take time to reset away from screens. I find it particularly helpful to take breaks when the reactions or emotions of others on social media clash with my own.
Limit engagement with COVID-19 news: I was finding exposure to constant news updates overwhelming, constantly reigniting anxiety. I now only read COVID-19 related news from a handful of trusted sources and at set times.
Get creative with the ways you socialise: I’m staying in touch with friend and family – checking in every day. Although I worry that this eats into work time, it is important to have time to laugh and give each other hope and reassurance. While a chat may suffice, you could try playing a game like Pictionary or Trivia on the app ‘Houseparty.’
Organise your time: Working from home can at times be a struggle for me because I don’t feel as if I am in the right environment, and it has taken a while to adjust. It can be difficult to find the motivation without writing things down. I’ve found it helpful to create a very basic (and flexible!) schedule to write down goals to achieve for the day in terms of studying and coursework. It may help to keep a routine, even just getting up and eating meals at the same time every day.
Take time to be creative: Whether it is playing music, practicing lettering, or simply doodling, putting time aside to do something creative everyday helps me stay motivated and relaxed.
An opportunity for hobbies: There is time now to pick up your hobbies, however quirky! If your hobbies can be done inside, now’s the time to give yourself the freedom to do what YOU want to do.
Set yourself small tasks or projects to do every day: This can be work stuff, or just things that need doing around the house - or both. It gives me a structure and the semblance of a routine. It also provides a small sense of accomplishment at the end of each day at the thought that something which needed doing has been completed. And if any of your to-dos feel too daunting, then just try the task for ten minutes every day. It’s only ten minutes, after all – and then it’s over!
Be kind and honest with yourself: As much as we try, it’s unlikely we’re going to achieve our “quarantine dreams” because being on lockdown doesn’t mean you have all the time in the world. Now is not the time to feel guilty for not being super productive, we are in the middle of a health crisis, so try not to beat yourself up. You’re anxious and isolated and you’re bound to trip up on your goals, and that is totally okay. Tomorrow is another day and we have to accept that we’re not 100% productive all the time.
A breath of fresh air: Whether it’s a walk, a run or a bicycle ride, try and get out for your one form of exercise if you can! I have to say, having a 6-month-old puppy at this moment in time has been so helpful for me, in both calming my anxiety, but also forcing me to get out of the house! If as a student you are now at home with a family pet, spend time with them. If you are lucky enough to have a canine friend, take them out for a walk somewhere and blow the cobwebs away!
Stop: In our fast-paced world, we are rarely offered moments to sit down with ourselves. There is an opportunity here to stop and think. With life on pause, there is a chance to discover what makes you, you and begin to love that. You can do this with; journaling, reading, watching a new tv show or creating a bucket list.

Our message: don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are now powerless, just because you can’t go out, you’ve got this! In Einstein’s words “energy cannot be destroyed or created”, all we can do is change its form.

Now you are indoors, what will you do with your energy?

If you are looking for more advice and support for your mental health, visit www.studentminds.org.uk and dip into the Student Minds Covid-19 blog series for more tips and suggestions:
www.studentmindsblog.co.uk/search/label/Covid-19

Written by:

Michael Priestley is a PhD student at Durham University and co-chair of the SMaRteN Early Career Research Group.

Marta Ortega Vega is a final year Psychology undergraduate student at King’s College London. She is currently a member of SMaRteN's Key Questions Project Steering Group, and she is passionate about promoting positive wellbeing with other students through peer support.

Katie Tyrell is a PhD student at the University of Suffolk and co-chair of the SMaRteN Early Career Research Group.

Elizabeth James is a second-year doctoral student of Counselling Psychology at Teesside University and a student mental health campaigner. Her research interests are in undergraduate student mental health, identity, mental time travel and help-seeking behaviours.

Eadie Simons is a second-year sport and exercise science student at the University of Lincoln, with a particular interest in the mental health of student athletes.

Connor Gayle is studying BSc Psychology (Educational and Developmental Psychology) at Nottingham Trent University. Through his participation in Student Mental Health research, he hopes to help stimulate the conversation about what many find important to living, as he finds that rarely gets dealt with.

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