COVID19 - Unpacking fact vs fiction! + Self Care Strategies

I've been at home with my almost 3 yr old since sat evening when he came down with a cold. I'm going stir crazy already. And I'm feeling depressed at the thought of being more socially isolated for months to come. I've spent a lot of my life in some kind of social isolation, and in this round since my son was born, I feel like I'm just coming out of it now. I don't know how I am going to handle this. I find it difficult being a single mum as it is.

I can think of a bunch of things that might help pass the time a little - and I totally can't afford them, or maybe could one or two but how to choose...but really I should probably keep every scrap in case of a lot of unknowns right now. I would normally spend any little bit extra (and I am so blessed to sometimes have a tiny bit extra, although at the same time I don't actually have enough to meet our real needs...I know that doesnt make sense!) , on doing something good to lift my spirits out of this feeling/moment. Finances or headspace/mood? both are absolutley necessary...

A bit scared of what my reality is going to be for the next little while , and how I can be my best (or at least ok!) for my son too.

cheers & best wishes

@Seren

you might be able to find some cheap games and puzzles if you have an op shop near you. toy libraries also are a good resource if you have one. you might be able to do some cooking or craft activities.

Gosh my anxiety is huge today. I'm a mess. 😢😢

Sabbath! 😄 @plasmo

Hey wonderful people @plasmo @BlueBay @Seren @Millieme @Shaz51 and others. Just to let you know sky news has broadcast live coverage of the Govt's response to the virus, there's some great practical tips and direction in today's report. Check it out here 🙂

Hey @BlueBay it's normal to feel anxious about this. But it's important to stay strong and remember we've got some direction and tangible actions coming into place 🙂 If you need a chat, please reach out to the Help Centre here. They'll be open soon!

Hey @Seren I can imagine it's a very frustrating feeling. The Govt has just addressed the panic buying and hoarding, hopefully Australians listen. Social media is probably not helping the cause but I have faith that the hysteria will settle. Do you have a backyard or outdoor area at your place at all? Sometimes getting outside can break up a lot of the challenges of the day.

@Millieme Keeping routine and schedule items each hour is an awesome idea. I have been going outside each hour which is great, I am lucky the local coffee shop is still open for take-aways! So that's a nice excuse for a walk. Thanks heaps for sharing @Millieme, let's hope the shops settle soon too 🙂

Hi @Former-Member These supermarket shortages are really stressing my husband who does most of the shopping and cooking. It's even got to the stage where he won't watch the news because he's sick of hearing about COVID-19. I support him as best I can but a bit hard to do when you feel glum yourself. My self-care strategies are to potter around the garden, do some word puzzles, send friends emails and read a good book.

i'm wondering if there's too much reporting,if i hear too much of something i tend to switch off. it does impact just about everything though and some easy stories in it, prefer if the mainstream news shifted some to a corona special.

Hi everyone,

I was thinking today as winter is approaching in Australia, about the weather, the rain, the storms and especially power outages. The PM announced to brace ourselves for 6months or so. As I live in the Central coast, we had a lot of outages last winter, plus recently during summer for 4days or so. To think about how long Ausgrid will take to send out repair works and if the workers had CODVID-19, the lengthy wait.

So dear friends I went into Kmart today and got a $20 camping stove and the gas refills for $4. Plus fire starters at Coles/Bunnings for a small bbq. Just food for thought as all our food in the fridge had to be thrown away this past summer outage. If you have canned foods it will be a quick way to cook/warm up.

I have don't have many friends, so I just wanted to share this 🙂