Finding Normalcy Living in A Pandemic
How are you finding normalcy living in a pandemic?
Up until 3 weeks ago, I was getting my physical exercise at home and taking walks.
Since going to a health club has been part of my life now for almost 39 years, not going has not been normal for me.
Because I finally figured out how to register on the app a head of time, for classes at Lifetime Fitness, I was able to get in without it saying, “the class was full”.
Following the protocols, they have for COVID-19, helped me to feel safe being there. I’ve begun to feel some normalcy returning in my life.
For instance, after the first weight class and swimming class I took, I felt uplifted. I could feel some normalcy coming back into my life.
In addition, the endorphins that our body creates during exercise, helped with the feeling of normalcy, and being uplifted.
I was able to attend the last outdoor pool class of 2020. As I was listening to the music and doing the water aerobics, I found myself feeling such happiness. My face was in a constant smile!
When I went back the next Friday, taking the class inside, my smile and joy returned.
In contrast, as I have been making my way through living in this pandemic, I realized I had not been feeling joy automatically. It took some effort to feel it.
As some normalcy has returned through being back at the health club, my usual, automatic joy was there.
I would feel joy if I was conscious of it. By singing and being with people I love, I found joy.
Only doing the “normal” things, my joy just showed up.
It’s now been 7 months since our country first had the stay at home orders.
We were all thrown into living in confusion and uncertainty.
Furthermore, all of us were in this together. We all have had our lives disrupted.
No one was exempt.
What about you, do you find as you do things that help you live in more normalcy, you’re feeling more joy?
Most of us did not think 7 months later, this pandemic would still be here.
I’m grateful for the newer therapeutics that have been developed and the things that the experts have learned, they did not know at the beginning.
The percentage of deaths are much lower now than they were.
As I write my articles, you may have noticed, I like to look up things that others say about my topic.
I’ll include the link at the bottom if you want to read more of a piece I liked, that focused on teens. This advice is helpful for everyone, however.
“What is normal? While navigating life through a pandemic, our normal starts to feel out of whack.
The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on the world. Businesses, schools, and households alike struggled to maintain some kind of normalcy.
As a result, the term “new normal” is understandably pervasive.
But there’s good news: WE define what is “normal”. We get to determine what is normal in our lives.
We are currently living in an environment where socializing is difficult at best, and humans are very social creatures.
So, we must carry our normal around with us – inside ourselves – to help lessen the pressure to adapt to drastic changes. Our core, or foundation, doesn’t change. A large part of our foundation is our mental health.
Since we are such social creatures, long-term isolation can have a negative effect on our mental health.
During this pandemic, it’s time to get creative.
Our “normal” routines are shattered. But if we think about it, our routines change all the time.
Some are short-term changes and other changes are long-term. For example, every summer, we go to our summer routine, then if you are a student, when school starts, that’s another routine.
If we change schools or businesses, that starts another routine. If the school goes on a field trip, or you go on vacation, that’s a new routine to be followed. The changes in routine may seem challenging at first, but we eventually adapt.
However, during a pandemic, we are forced into new routines that we did not plan for and that may not fit our lifestyle – but we must adjust anyway.
Uncertainty and fear can create anxiety, and the longer the isolation lasts the more that anxiety can rise. Also keep in mind that every family is different and maneuvers through the pandemic in its own way.
So, your new “normal” routine can be unique to you and your familial environment.
Find different ways to do things that were once considered normal.”
I like “we must carry our normal with us-inside ourselves”.
Similar to what I did when I made the choice to go back to the health club. It isn’t exactly normal, wearing a mask wherever you go in the club, only I’m choosing to take my normal with me.
What about you? Share with me in a comment how you have been living some normalcy in a pandemic. I’d love to hear from you.
Here’s to “taking your normal with you, to help lessen the pressure to adapt to drastic changes”!
With love and appreciation,
Connie
Here is the link to read more on this topic:
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