How to keep calm and not lose it while being stuck at home.

Do you feel like you are loosing your mind during this Pandemic?

Many of us work outside of our house or if we work from home we have a good chunk of time in which we are alone doing our work so we can be productive. There is a good 40 give or take hours a week in which we are not around our families so we can get things done. With this pandemic we are now forced to be at home with our families 24/7 and for many of us it is driving us batshit crazy. Every one of us has a breaking point and mine was this week.

Up until my breaking point I used this time pretty effectively focusing on projects that I had planned to do, really focusing on networking and one of the projects that I was actually looking to do and start this summer when I was on maternity leave was to start a new podcast called and a networking group, Mamma Hustle. As you can see, I now have the website and blog, up and running and soon launching the podcast. These projects kept me very, very occupied, along with doing a lot more content and zoom sessions with my clients. As you can see I was very busy and I really didn't have to worry too much about this whole stay in place order because I was already working from home since 2016. But this week, especially, it kind of came to a head where I realized I am tired of being stuck in this house with two other people. I felt like I was loosing my mind and even blew up at my husband who was trying to help me with a project, yes I am not perfect, I am a mom to be with ragging hormones.

Give yourself Space

This week I felt like I was being suffocated, I had to tell two people in my household that during these set times I need you to be quiet. I also kind of felt a little bit obligated to spend more time with them because I was around more frequently. I felt that it was necessity to spend time with them, but at the same time feeling suffocated because I can't escape. I brought up that feeling in my couple therapy session this week and my husband was actually shocked I felt this way and told me that I didn’t need to spend all my time with him and that he understands I need my space,

Before the stay in place order I would give myself space to refuel by seeing my friends, gardening, doing a workout class, going to a meditation group and after spending a few hours outside the house I was able to come back feeling refreshed. That was all taken away with this order, my options became limited. My therapist recommended that we set up times to be together with the family and times to be apart, a schedule like any other day prior to this COVID-19 crisis and to share it with my family so they know why I am not around them.

So my first tip for you is communicate. Make sure that you communicate with your family members. As far as your expectations maybe it's telling your partner “I need an hour from 7am to 8am to do my morning routine” or “I need X amount of hours to get work done”, whatever it may be, just really have that communication so that you both know what it is that you need.

Emergency Fund

If you do not have an emergency fund, this is probably like a really eye opening experience for you. Luckily I do, although I don't really like tapping into it. If you are cash strapped at this time take a look at your spending and only buy the necessities. My money is going towards groceries. I haven't really had a tap too much into my emergency fund. But it's nice to know that I have that. And for those that don't, it's time to get resourceful. If you're really strapped for money is to start selling unnecessary items on eBay if it's in good condition. If you have a skill set, whether that is creating websites or editing things, or you really find that you're spending a lot of time on social media, and you're great at creating awesome captions and hashtags put your services on Fiverr or Upwork . There are many businesses that are still functioning and in need of your services. So a really great time to explore a side hustle. I know a lot of people are not spinning a whole lot of money, but there are some people that are still spending money because they have a lucrative business going on. So again, you could do some VA work. Be resourceful l and look for remote work that you can do.

Childcare:

I know many moms out there are not only trying to work from home, run their business, and clean and cook but they are now dealing with being their child’s educator. Schools across America are closed leaving families the responsibility of home schooling.

Take it from some of my friends that work in childcare and work in early childhood development and our teachers. Your kid is not spending all eight hours a day learning. So break it up, spend an hour here and they're giving them a lesson plan then let them play, snack, watch tv, nap whatever you need them to do so you can get your work done or just relax yourself. Also split up the reasonability between other family members if you can. Ask your spouse or you're older kids to help out. There are a ton of free resources even college classes you can now take online so look into them and use them to help educate your children.

Self care is needed

Whether we are stuck at home with ourselves or with other people, you probably feel like you are losing your mind. And you wondering how the heck am I going to get through this? Well, couple of things is and it's easier said than done trust and belief because my husband was telling me this earlier today, and I'm like, I don't want to do it. It's is to RELAX and remember the importance of self care. I'm still doing my daily meditation in the morning and reading. I'm still educating myself on things by enrolling in courses and listening to podcast. I'm still hanging out with my friends Via Zoom and having my women's groups that are godsend.

Take this down time to call up your friends, limit the exposure to news and social media, and take a much needed moment to yourself. That moment can be as simple as having a relaxing bath at night with candles, tea or a glass of wine and listening to soft music. Or something a bit more invigorating like a dance party in your living room. Just do your best whatever it may be to treat yourself.

Stay calm and carry on.