How To Tame Pandemic Stress In the Office & at Home

Are you still going into the office these days? I am, and I’m pretty much writing this post for myself, since I’ve been feeling a little overwhelmed lately. So is everyone I know. It’s pretty hard not to be a victim of pandemic stress, as this virus is affecting everyone in one way or another.

As a company in one of the critical infrastructure sectors, just the pandemic paperwork, planning, and preparation (wow – say that five times fast!) Anyway, all that alone takes up most of my boss’s day. Therefore, most of my day!

Pandemic Stress

My main complaint is that whether I’m at work or at home, I often find myself just staring at nothing while my brain whirls around! I think about work at home, and home at work. I’m trying to think of where I could possibly get more hand sanitizer for the office. Did I really wipe down all the surfaces enough? Will the arborist people still come to our house to take care of our tree as scheduled?

Should I wash my hands again? Maybe I’ll just send money to my hair stylist so she can stay in business when I can’t go to my appointment. Did I ever finish that project that got interrupted four times by virus stuff yesterday?

I’m wondering which I should do next of the many many work and home things I need to do. And it’s all coated with a thin – or not so thin – layer of worry.

And Worry

Which is odd, because I’m not a worrier. But strange times call for strange thoughts – or something. I’m just so busy thinking of everything at once, that I can’t make any decisions at all.

If that sounds like you, read on.

And be sure to get all the way to the bottom for the biggest and best, tie-it-all-together tip.

How To Tame Pandemic Stress

Now that I’ve mulled it all over a bit – and gotten tired of being stressed out – I decided to remember all the things I know and just have been too overwhelmed to implement. I thought if I wrote them down, it would help. Maybe even help someone else.

I actually have a philosophy for this kind of situation. I just forgot it before.

Make A Plan, So You Don’t Have to Worry About It.

Me.

There’s an element of acceptance and trust in that. Basically once I’ve made the plan and done everything I can do, I toss it out there to the universe and relax. I know I’m prepared – the rest is out of my control. If some new thing comes up, I don’t stress about it. I just add it to the plan.

First, Realize Your Job Is Important

On Instagram, it seems like everyone is self-quarantining at home. “Stay Home” slogans, icons, and posters are everywhere.

On my way to and from work, I pass several huge lighted signs over the freeway. They used to say “Lane closure in 4 miles.” Now they read “Stay Home. Save Lives.” I’d love to stay home. And every time I see one of those signs, I sort of feel bad for being out there. It’s like being scolded by the Department of Transportation. Like a sideways case of survivor guilt. Pandemic stress.

But I remember now, to remind myself each time, that what I’m doing is important. I’m doing my part by continuing to work at a job that provides support to people on the front lines. I’m SUPPOSED to be out there.

Do Everything You Can at Work

You’ve seen the lists: Wash your hands. Cover your cough. Stay six feet away from other people. Don’t touch your face. Stay home when you’re sick. All those things apply, and you can find that info and more at the CDC website, the definitive resource.

But in addition, you want to go above and beyond when you’re in the workplace now, so here are a few extra tips:

• Wash your hands and wipe down your area first thing every morning.
• Arrive early, stay late, or adjust your hours so you’re not walking through the door in a group with everyone else.
• Carry wipes (purchased or homemade) when you leave your desk, and wipe down any doorknobs, railings, light switches, etc. as you go.
• Call or email your coworkers rather than going to their desks.
• Scan papers and send via email instead of sending interoffice mail.
• Don’t use confined spaces. (ie: we closed the break rooms, and moved the lunch and prep tables to the common areas.)
• Cancel meetings! Send info and updates via email.
• Move desks/spaces so everyone is separated by at least six feet.
• Keep an emergency employee contact list where you can get it at home, just in case.

I’m sure there are many more. Let me know if you have good tips to share.

Turn Off (Most Of) The News

You’ve heard people say to turn off the news. Which is all very well, but you don’t want to be ignorant of the situation, right? I actually stopped watching all television news back in my 20’s. I just couldn’t deal. But I still wanted to know what was going on. That’s kind of the situation we’ve got now. The incessant exposure is so depressing, and often not very useful.

What I did in my 20’s and what I’m doing now, is to find a very factual source of information and get my news there. And only for a set period of time each day – say 15 min to a half hour. For current news, I subscribe to the Oregon Health Authority Coronavirus Updates. They send official state news, stats, recommendations, and edicts right to my inbox every day. I don’t even have to go looking for it!

The CDC website is good too, but I like the state one, because they tell me what I have to do. Or not do. The state is the boss of me. Find your state’s Health Department here.

Listen to Something Happy On Your Commute

To combat all the bad news out there, I like to listen to something I really enjoy on my commute.

• Audible books
• Your favorite music
• Inspiring podcasts

Stay Healthy

You know these. You could even combine the last two!

• Get enough sleep
• Eat healthy meals
• Get some exercise
• Get some fresh air

Quiet Your Mind

• Meditate

Many years ago when I was going through a physical and emotional rough patch, I was seeing several doctors and was kind of on treatment overload. Nothing was helping and I was going to chuck it all in. One of my doctors told me, “if you do nothing else, just meditate.” I followed his advice, and it worked! I just do the ‘sit still and quiet, and keep bringing your focus back to one thing’ method, using a timer app with a lovely little chime.

Use a gentle timer, or a meditation app. There are tons of them out there. Pick one you like. You’ll be surprised how much even 5 minutes a day will help clear your brain and reduce pandemic stress!

Clear The Clutter

And speaking of clear, I realized another one of the things that was really contributing to the excess in my brain. My stacks of paper! And binders and mail and filing. Clearing the clutter really helps clear the mind.

It also makes it easier to wipe down your desk every morning!

Cut Back On The Obligations

This was a big one. I love to do a lot of things, so I’m sometimes over committed. When I am, it adds a lot to the frantic pace and cluttered brain. But especially now, too much on your plate can push you right over the edge into pandemic stress and frantic yet unproductive mental meandering.

Try to cut back as much as you can. For instance, I have a couple big projects for my bookkeeping clients (yes, another side job.) I need to get those done, so I’ve hired a talented friend to do a lot of it for me. Her help frees up some time and some brain space, reduces the worry, and gets me back on track.

Schedule Time Blocks To Tame The Overwhelm

And now we come to the overarching tip to wrap all the previous suggestions up together and make them work for you!

Sit down with your calendar and make yourself a weekly schedule. BLOCK OUT TIME on your calendar for the things above that you want to do. Also the things that you already do or want to do in other areas. Give yourself blocks of between 5 minutes (meditating) and 2 hours (working on the bookkeeping projects.) I’ve found that after more than 2 hours or so you start to lose steam and need a break.

Add in all the things you want to do regularly each week. Chores, food prep, sleep, exercise, personal email, planning for the next week, making phone calls, etc.

Make Your Schedule

Also block out the hours you spend at work. You probably have a separate calendar or task list there. But now during work time, you won’t have to worry about the rest. Because you know you’ve got it scheduled.

Add in things you’ve learned from your daily state updates. (ie: leave extra time for shopping trips, since they’re now only letting 45 people into the store at a time. Or, don’t freak out so much because they’ve extended the tax filing date!)

And schedule in some relaxation and play time too!

When you have a schedule/time block, you don’t waste time spinning your brain, over-thinking, and waffling. You spend time doing! And then you can relax, knowing you’re doing all you can.

Make A Plan, So You Don’t Have To Worry About Pandemic Stress

There. I can’t wait to plan my calendar – I feel better already. I hope you do too! And if you have other tips to keep things under control during this time, whether for work or home, please let us know in the comments. Because we’re all helping each other, we’ll make it through even stronger.

Stay safe and take care everybody – I’m so glad you’re along!

If you’re really getting into this organizing and planning stuff, check out my post about the amazing book that will change your life.

Pin Tame Pandemic Stress For Later

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