Tips for Staying Home and Staying Sane

Holy shit 2020. You just keep D R A G G I N G on. We all feel the drag. When we drag ourselves out of bed in the morning to face another groundhog day. When we drag our kids through another zoom class, at-home art project, math madness, cello practice. When we drag the mask off our sweaty faces, our own bad breath blowing back at us, any time we dare venture out for more toilet paper, school supplies, or (who are we kidding) booze. And we are OVER IT. But sadly, it is not over us.

So how do we stay sane staying home for an indefinite amount of time looking forward? Well, we did our best to come up with some sanity saving tips to try as we keep on dragging along.

1) Expand your safe space.
Take a look around at your “safety zone”, your home and your yard/terrace/plot. Is there space you haven’t been using? Or a space that you can repurpose in to something that feels new, and relaxing? This could mean turning the guest room (because its def not in use now) in to a creative studio, meditation room, or library. Or, get outside your walls and refresh your patio/deck/balcony. Spray paint worn furniture, string up some lights, buy or build a water feature, and fill planters with fall greenery. If you’re lucky enough to have the room, install a simple shed in the back yard and use it as a RETREAT (I’m talking to you online schooling parents). If you’re low on space, even repurposing a closet into a cozy reading nook or much needed at home work space will help you feel less like the walls are closing in.

2) Let there be light.
Nothing will bum you out faster than being shut up in a dark and dreary room. LIGHT is important to maintain a good attitude and not getting enough of it will quickly deplete your much needed mood boosting hormones like serotonin and oxytocin. There are many ways to shed light on your space but by far the simplest is to just open the blinds. Make throwing open the shades every morning part of your routine and your brain and stress levels will thank you for it. Replace dense window coverings with light filtering shades or drapery, saving the blackout styles only for the bedroom. Aside from letting the sunshine in, turn off harsh overhead lighting (it tends to makes us tense with its sharp shadows) and instead rely on task lighting such as lamps, pendants, and sconces. Lower lighting gives off a more even light and feels relaxed and welcoming.

3) Focus on the senses.
Particularly in a high-stress state, our sensory processing goes on high alert. We can start to feel drained, get more headaches than normal, and be resistant to certain smells, tastes, and textures. So pay attention to your senses and surround yourself with things that soothe your stressed out self. Stay away from anything irritating to your skin, (like jute, wool, bamboo, polyester) and grating to your ears, eyes, and nose. Purchasing a tabletop fountain with a soothing sound and a lavender candle could be just what you need to calm your nerves. Also, this is a good time to repaint a loud wall to something more serene or to replace the bulbs in your fixtures with warm toned soft-white LED’s.

4) Organize for real life.
Now that we’ve all been in our homes more than ever before, its much easier to see how we truly actually LIVE in them. All of our grand aspirations have been forced into reality this year and our home design is no exception. Now is a great time to take inventory on how each space in your home functions on a daily basis. Grade each area on how its ACTUALLY working for you, not how you hoped it would work for you and make changes accordingly. Purge what isn’t being used, because space is a commodity not to be taken advantage of, and create systems for what is. Take note of what is being dropped and where, for example if papers always end up on the counter even though you have a file for them in the cabinet, and find a solution for those items that feels easy to maintain.

5) Get away from it all.
If you’ve tried everything and still feel cabin fever setting in, then friend, you just gotta get the hell outta Dodge. A literal change of scenery will do wonders for your sanity and there ARE ways to do it in a socially responsible way. Take a day trip to a State park and hike around or rent an RV for a weekend retreat to somewhere wild and free. If you can’t find an RV available, rent a van (like a u-haul) and pack it with cozy mats and pillows for a quick DIY version. Or, and this is my favorite getaway idea, do a HOUSE SWAP with a friend. If you’re both healthy and you commit to keeping clean, you can both have a much needed respite from your own walls for FREE. Extra sanity saving points if your friend has a beautiful view or a hot tub. All this to say, novelty is the spice of life and experiencing it keeps us from going sour.

What tips do you have to stay sane during this crazy time at home? For more ideas on refreshing your space contact us today. Stay healthy, stay home, stay sane.