Spring Has Sprung…And How I’m Staying Sane Amidst the Chaos

Amazon sunglasses ($13! – shop more sunglasses here), White Company duster, White Company sweater, White Company skirt (shop more skirts here), Everlane sneakers (shop more sneakers here), Alexandre Birman heels (shop more AB here), Shashi necklace (shop more Shashi here), Chanel bag, Celine bag 

Are you staying sane right now amidst the COVID-19 chaos?  Depends on the hour, right?  It is crazy how seemingly normal life was mere weeks ago and being in this current situation.  When this is all said and done, I hope we can appreciate our everyday freedoms again.  I know I won’t take my kids’ being able to have fun at school or just popping into a restaurant for granted (for awhile, at least).  

Maybe you haven’t been social distancing as long as we have–or maybe you’ve been doing it longer!  I commend everyone who is still out there working while many of us work from home (medical personnel, grocery store workers, delivery people–thank you isn’t enough; and I think it goes without saying that I sincerely hope we can get this under control sooner rather than later so that our economy has a chance to bounce back.  I, too, am a small business owner and I won’t lie when I say that this shut down has already affected my livelihood.  In addition, I started One/Third last year and while we aren’t paying ourselves yet, COVID-19 has affected our production and supply chain in a huge way–we’re months behind.  And not only that, but once we have the jackets to sell, will our customers be able to buy them?!  I could speculate all day long, but I’m trying to breathe and get through this one day at a time–I’m sure you can relate.

• Clean or organize something once a day.  I force myself to do one one cleaning or organization task a day.  It’s crazy how messy your home can get when you’re there ALL the time.  Aside from the natural picking up after yourself as you go along, I’ve been making myself do one project a day.  It might be a 10 minute project like organizing the shoes in the mudroom, or a bigger project like cleaning out the medicine cabinet and throwing away expired meds (I found something from 2016 in there…yikes).  Either way, it makes me feel accomplished.  And I should probably say that being naturally organized is NOT in my DNA and this has helped me tremendously–it helps me feel in control of SOMETHING
• Get outside.  Please not in a huge gathering, but go for a walk alone or with your immediate family.  Listen to a podcast or audiobook.  Take your kids.  Zone out.  Have them bring a bucket and pick up everything that’s interesting to them.  You’ll feel better–even if it’s cold….I promise.
• Feel the feelings (and let others do the same).  We’ve been “social distancing” since March 13.  It’s really hard.  Some days are fun and some days are impossible.  My emotions are on a roller coaster and I think it’s ok if you aren’t positive all the time.   As my therapist would say, if you were to share your feelings with a friend, what would you say to them?  Would you tell them to buck up and get over it? No, you wouldn’t. You need to treat yourself with the compassion that you’d treat a loved one with.  If you have kids (especially ones who go to school or have routines), chances are they’re probably frustrated, too and that’s totally understandable given the situation.  They probably won’t fully comprehend everything but we need to give each other grace.
• Break the “rules.”  We don’t have iPads but I’m the first to admit they kids watching a lot more TV than usual.  We’re also eating a lot more “junk food” than usual, too.  My house is a wreck, too.  You know, whatever works.  There is nothing normal about the situation right now and if that means extra episodes of Scooby Doo, so be it.

Alright, what am I missing?  I need some tips to maintain sanity.