Life in lockdown

Lockdown is a phrase we have all become accustomed to, but one which I never thought I would become acquainted with. 

At the moment of writing this I am in the midst of a 14 day isolation period where I am unable to step outside of the boundaries of my home. It just so happens that my home consists of a bedroom at this stage in my life. I must admit prior to this, the thought of being in isolation was one which I thought I wouldn't be able to cope with. A life without physical contact, fresh air and freedom...But the brain is a magnificent organ that can either make or break you. It's not necessarily a matter of changing your mindset because that's not always possible, but it's adapting your brain's capacity in the circumstances you find yourself in, as well as your life as you know it. I've gone from exercising outside and in a gym to doing home workouts and finding other ways to entertain myself than through other people. 

It has made me realise that I am on my own, but only in physicality. I can be at one with myself and rely on myself to get through each day. I would always fill every single minute of my day with seeing people or doing something productive and now, I have to turn that on its head and do the exact opposite and I'm ok. It's not necessarily what I want to do, but I certainly haven't died like I thought I would have. There are extremely wobbly moments and have been where I have felt on the brink of insanity as well as feeling like I am a hamster trapped in a cage, but I know this is only for a short period of time and by understanding my coping mechanisms, I can find find ways through it.

It's not necessarily normal for the human body to be put through these situations, as we too often know that it can lead to insanity and it is no surprise that mental illness has increased amongst the lockdown. I too know with my mental health diagnosis' that my brain can become overwhelming to the point I no longer feel that I can be rational about my actions, however I am trying to utilise my brain in such a way that I try to become accustomed to this way of life. It's important to remain in contact with friends and family, counsellors and charities to keep you grounded and stick to a routine.

Amongst everything, the isolation has taught me that I can handle being by myself and I can rely on myself. I don't need to rely on another, but it is also not a negative to do so. I won't end up dying by losing my mind and my mind is a lot stronger than the panic thought it was. I am taking this time as an opportunity to gain knowledge about myself and rest; something that I would never get to do in any other circumstances that would be presented to me in the ordinary way of life. This situation won't last forever and there is nothing that I can do to change it, so there is no point in wasting my energy, wishing my life was different. It's okay to feel a range of emotions and let them flow through you, but try not to let them become overwhelming and if they do, reach out. It won't be as bad as you think.

Lil' Steps Wellness Farm | AD

Animals, they are always that I gravitate towards during my down days. They bring a sense of calm and an overwhelming sense of happiness. 

Lil' Wellness Farm uses the idea of animals to help children and teens through their mental health struggles, by using them to assist with their therapy. If you've been reading my blog for a long time, you will know that first and foremost, therapy is something which I have put as my number one recommendation. Therapy is what can help you get to the route causes of your mental illness and struggles, to help and rewire your brain. For children, therapy can sometimes be something that seems quite formal and scary and so with the introduction of animals, it provides a much easier and calmer environment. Adults can also benefit from this too! I'm twenty-five now and would happily have this as part of my therapy routine.

The Farm is situated in St. Malo, MB and it offers a range of services and programmes to suit whatever issue you may be dealing with. Recently, the founder of the farm, Lucy has written a book to accompany the wellness treatments that are already offered. It is a book focused for children and teaches them how to handle worry and fear and how to deal with it appropriately. This makes it much less scary than seeing someone sitting in an armchair as they would traditionally experience! I know I would've loved it if my cartoon characters would've spoken about at the anxieties I was feeling as a young child. The book is titled 'Cindy and Cristabelle's Big Scare'. You can grab yourself a copy from the website which I have linked below.

Lucy is also expanding her experiences to create courses that will appear in schools based upon the book, as well as a parent and caregiver course which will help parents to understand how to look after their child if they are struggling. This is hugely important as I find it is often the negativity from parents and guardians that can really stunt the growth of a child when they are struggling. If we find that mental health is becoming something that may become part of a school syllabus, we will find happier and healthier children. 

Lucy has a history routed in psychology and counselling and has used this to help create a professional, fun and working environment that I wish I had access to during my trying times. 

If anything I have written is something that you would be interested in, alongside all of the other events and services the farm offers, head over to their website, here.

Understanding other's emotions

Believe it or not, we all can still find ourselves acting from a primitive side of our brain during most situations in our lives. When a car pulls out on us, we usually react in anger rather than thinking why the other person acted in such a way. This is known as a primitive reaction. Perhaps that person was late for an interview or had a medical emergency? That's not to say that their actions were correct, it's just a intellectual thought pattern that will change our unhelpful reaction at the time and one that we rarely consider.

I feel teenagers, my teenage self included, are a prime example of having emotional outbursts without thinking of the reasoning behind it first. I remember that I used to just argue and scream and shout anytime I felt attacked for my behaviour in the aim of defending it. However, that never ended well and I always ended being worse off. Perhaps the biggest issue was that I never did reflect and the problem didn't get solved at all.

If there's struggles in relationship or connection, it may be that we are misunderstanding the other person and what they are trying to portray. We can find that people seem to overreact about the tiniest thing and take their anger out upon us, and we have the tendency to bite right back, which is never going to help anyone. But before doing this, take a few seconds to try and examine why this person is acting the way they are. The kitchen might have a few crumbs on the worktop and yet you're now part of an argument as if you've broken their favourite and rare piece of pottery. Their reaction seems extreme and your reaction is to defend yourself because you don't want your character to be defamed for no apparent reason. However what you may find with reactions such as this, is that the person is really saying to you that they got a warning at work today, or their Mum is sick. Even as adults we can often find ourselves reverting back to our childhood behaviours when we are going through struggles. This is not to excuse their behaviour and should be told as such, but it may be a subtle cry for help. 

Sometimes when we are personally attacked, it may not be about you yourself, but may be about what the other person is struggling with. Never automatically assume this though and always see where you can improve before looking into the other person's emotional state. Every action that we undertake draws from all areas of life, some good experiences and some bad and we react and assume accordingly to what we have been taught. This is why when someone acts in a way that I wouldn't be deem to be correct or right, I usually take the time to sit back and see if there are any internal or external factors that would've caused them to act in that way before deciding how to react. You'll find your reactions and ways of coping will change dramatically when switching from primitive reactions to intellectual and logical ones.