We’ve been in lockdown for a good couple of months now and the idea of social distancing is becoming normal – however staying connected with family and friends has never been more important.
Humans are social beings so it is completely normal to be finding this very difficult and to feel lonely at times and for the situation to be having a negative impact on our mental health.
It doesn’t matter how we connect, what’s important is bridging that distance.
So, what are some ways that we can stay connected with others during lockdown?
Go old school and become a pen pal. (You can access the link to the community pen pals social action here). Obviously in today’s society we are used to using technology but why not do something different and write and send a letter to a friend or family member? This will be a nice surprise and you might even motivate them to write one back to you.
Quiz night. Everyone loves a good quiz. Get a group of friends or a group of your family members on a group video call and host a quiz once a week. Or if you’re fed up of video calls why not send a list of quiz questions to a group chat and have everyone answer them on there.
Virtual book club. Create a group chat with your friends and decide on a book that you will all read every couple of weeks or every month. Get together on the chat and share your views and how you’re finding it.
Make the most of your time outside. We know we’re supposed to be staying at home but when we are out on one of our walks maybe video call a family member who lives further away and show them around your neighbourhood. This will make you feel closer to them.
Set a challenge. Come up with a challenge to do with fitness, or a hobby. This could be challenging your friends to do 10 sit ups everyday and increase it by 1 everyday or if you and your friends like art, challenge them to paint a picture every week. You can access our social action page here for ideas!
Buy and send someone you love a thoughtful present. I decided to send my best friend a book of motivational quotes to help her and her family get through this difficult time. The present can be handmade too so feel free to be as creative as you want.
Remember that if you are struggling with being away from loved ones and are feeling lonely or isolated you can find the contact details of the Samaritans here: samaritans.org where you can speak to someone for free or childline.org.uk where you can log on and speak to a trained counsellor or interact with forums with other young people. I call Samaritans occasionally for additional help as I don’t have the strongest support network at home and I always find it really comforting to have someone on the other end of the phone willing to listen.
Remember that you are not alone in missing being around friends and family. My dad lives and works abroad and he hasn’t been able to visit because of lockdown restrictions so my family and I have been finding it difficult being away from him but we make sure to videocall every night to catch up which I find has been helping me.
CHALLENGE:
Reach out to a friend or family member that you haven’t made contact with for a while OR try one of the suggestions above this week and record how it made you feel in a diary.
Thanks for reading guys, next week I will be discussing how exercise, nutrition and routine can all impact on our mental health.
Erna,
EmpowHER intern
My name is Erna, I am 20 years old and I’m an intern for the EmpowHER project at the British Red Cross. I am doing this internship alongside studying for my psychology degree at university. I have enjoyed working with the team on helping to empower young women and girls to take on social action projects and look forward to working with groups in the future. In my spare time I like to draw, go cycling and take my puppy for long walks. I hope you’ll enjoy the series of blog posts that I’ll be doing on taking care of our mental health in lockdown.
British Red Cross EmpowHER 