This blog post will make absolutely no mention of the c-word, I promise!
These past few weeks have been challenging for all of us in some way, shape or form. It’s been a time of mixed emotions as we have treasured time spent with family and then wanted to escape, and then felt guilty for wanting to escape, and then found peace to settle down, and then wanted to escape again. Perhaps this cycle has happened to you?
My theme this month covered resilience and it was really interesting to discover what that meant for myself, for my family, for friends and colleagues as well as the online community I’m connected to. A big thank you goes out to all of the people I was able to connect with as you kept me strong and steady on days when I felt rocky. My big realisation came in about week 3 of lockdown when my craving for human connection, beyond virtual connection, was an emotional point for me. I really missed my immediate family and close friends and I can now say that I will always treasure these moments of connection going forward. I’ve never taken them for granted before, but I guess time spent with those I love will have an extra special place in my heart. As much as I love technology, nothing can replace the human touch.
At the beginning of April, I connected with some friends from my coaching studies and below are some points that stood out for us in terms of what made us more resilient during this time.
Definition (Sarah Owusu): Resilience is about being able to respond appropriately to whatever is happening in that moment. Being able to let go of what was, and noticing what needs to shift.
What Has Made Us More Resilient During This Time
- Somatic awareness (various forms of exercise, whether indoors or outdoors)
- Being conscious of keeping weekends and allowing that time to relax
- Being conscious of time spent on tech, perhaps even turning phones off
- Learning a new language
- Keeping to some kind of routine, including a spiritual connection like meditation
- Really enjoying quality time with family
- Encouraging work colleagues to dress appropriately for online meetings
- Being gentle with self and accepting that certain things don’t go as planned.
- Being aware of emotions and remembering to breathe
- Finding meaning in things (big or small)
- Allowing space to grieve and let go of control during these times
- Being able to trust the process
- Feeling grateful
- Trying to be present in the moment
I guess we can only try our best during trying times! And that is perfect!
On a side note, before I sign off, my husband was doing some woodwork on the day of lockdown commencing at midnight and sawed-off half his pinkie finger on his left hand. I really thought I’d react so differently to what I did – remaining calm, driving slowly to hospital, saying encouraging words filled with sympathy… Instead, I screamed, “What the f@#k have you done?” and then drove at about 180km/hr to Rosebank hospital. I think that was the scariest part of the whole experience for my husband!! Oops!
What I’m saying here, is that we are all human, and despite the ‘work’ we may do, sometimes emotions get the better of us and we look back thinking, I could have handled that better. As you look back on the lockdown period and sigh at some of the things you did, felt and said, just know that you are only human and there is always tomorrow!