Creativity in the Time of Pandemic

The world has been turned upside down by the coronavirus pandemic. How do you stay positive and calm when it feels like the whole world is lost and in confusion? I’m not a therapist nor a medical professional, and I don’t know what the future holds for us. However, I can share what steps work for me, in the hopes that they can help you too.

Every day, I acknowledge my feelings, I follow best practices on how to avoid contracting coronavirus, I stay connected with friends and family, and I do things that relax me.

In this blog, I’m going to share a list of 9 things that you can do to relax, ground yourself, and disconnect from the vicious news cycle.

I also have a surprise: I put together a free book for you that guides you through some of the ideas I list below! It’s called Creativity in the Time of Pandemic: An Adult Activity Book, and it’s a kickstart to get you into a positive, calm state of mind. It will get your creative juices flowing! No email address necessary.

Let’s get creative!

Remember that taking care of your mental and emotional well-being is just as important as looking after your physical health. We’re all going to need stamina to make it through to the end of the social isolation period, whenever that may be. Frequent breaks let your mind reset and refresh.

Let’s begin:

1. Limit the time you spend researching COVID-19. It is vital that you avoid becoming obsessed with the news cycle. It can and will drive you crazy. I have put rules in place: I only go on Facebook 3 days a week to avoid the articles that friends post about the virus. On top of that, I only am able to consume news about the pandemic for 30 minutes a day. I’m not going to lie – I struggle to abide by these rules sometimes. But I am gentle with myself if I slip up because every day, I do my best.

2. Take a walk without your phone. If you live in a neighborhood where you can walk around while staying 6 feet away from other individuals, I encourage you to get out of your house and take a walk. If you must travel with a phone, put it on airplane mode and tell your roommate or loved one that you will be disconnected during your walk. The point is to get out of your head and into the present moment, experiencing the world around you. I find it extremely liberating and freeing.

3. Relive a treasured memory – Take a walk down memory lane and remember a happy memory. Did you know that reminiscing about positive memories can reduce stress? In an upcoming blog post, I plan to write about my time living in France, which is always a source of happy memories for me. If you need help recalling a happy memory, use the formula who/what/when/where/why. Who were you with? What were you doing? When did it happen? (How old were you?) Where were you? Why is this memory so meaningful to you? Take 5-10 minutes out of your day to get cozy someplace in your house and just relive a pleasant memory.

4. Get creative – You can do this in so many ways. You can sculpt, bake, sing, play that guitar languishing in your closet, or start that gardening project you’ve been putting off. I love to watercolor and draw. To help you along your creativity journey, I drew a flower wreath for you to color in, on page 5 of Creativity in the Time of Pandemic. Go to town coloring it in with crayons, coloring pencils, pastels, pens — whatever you like! This wreath was inspired by the one in the book Peggy Dean’s Guide to Nature, Drawing & Watercolor – a fantastic book that I recommend for anyone learning how to draw.

5. Write a gratitude list – Gratitude is like magic. When you start to look around at your life and count blessings, you will always find more and more things to be grateful for! Look around the room you’re in right now, and write 10 things you’re grateful for. To supercharge this gratitude practice, write why you’re grateful for each thing.

6. Meditate for 10 minutes – Want to have a calmer mind? Make meditation a regular practice. You can start with as little as two minutes a day. That’s what I did, and then I worked my way up to 10 minutes a day. There are so many different ways you can meditate. You can use one of my guided meditations, from my book Self-Love through the Seasons. You can also do an unguided meditation. Sit in a comfy spot, set your phone timer, and relax into a peaceful state of mind during that time.

7. Start that project you’ve been meaning to start. Just begin with a tiny step. Start with just 15 minutes a day.

8. Spend more time doing the things that you love. Most of us are either working remotely or not working at all. Use the time that you would have spent commuting to and from work to do something indulgent that you love. And don’t guilt yourself into thinking you should be doing something “productive.” The time that was my morning commute is now spent working out with one of my besties from college via FaceTime.

9. Listen to audiobooks or podcasts instead of the news. I’m listening to Sound Bath by Sara Austen. I also recently listened to this great podcast with the therapist Karol Ward, “How to Reduce Anxiety and Loneliness During Coronavirus.”

Disconnecting gives you energy by granting you the space to reflect and recharge. I hope one, if not several, of the ideas above help you take a step towards reclaiming your happiness during this uncertain time.

If you need a little jumpstart to get started on one of the activities above, download your copy of Creativity in the Time of Pandemic: An Adult Activity Book now.

Click for relaxation + me time

It features a guided meditation, a coloring sheet, writing prompts, and even a drawing exercise.

This book is a PDF with fillable forms that you can type right into if you don’t have a printer. If you do have a printer, you’ll note that I designed it in black & white and optimized it for printing out and working in. Win-win.

Enjoy, and if you love it, leave a comment below or send me your feedback at [email protected].

Sending you lots of love and best wishes for continued great health.

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