Safety First

 

My motto for 2021 is going to be "SAFETY FIRST." And I'm going to start by postponing my licensure exam. My Mom and I had a good talk yesterday and she pointed out that with the COVID mutation in California and me being so high risk, it might be wiser to postpone. I completely agree.

Aside from risking death by taking a four hour test in a tiny, window-less room, my migraines have been awful. I'm not talking about head pain, although that happens sometimes too. I'm talking about being very dizzy, exhausted (not just fatigued) and my eyes being unable to focus. 

Luckily I have my every three month appointment with my migraine neurologist this Friday. But I'd like to get that more under control (if I can) before taking my big test. 

So this year I will go slow (I tend to be a big rusher) and take my safety seriously. I will advocate for myself and share more openly what's going on with my body. People only know what you tell them and I tend to not tell people much. Even those closest to me. 

I will also let others help keep me safe. That's a big one! 

Safety first.

Everything else second.

Taking Care

These are crazy times. Everything in the world is changing so fast, on every level that it's hard to keep up. People are dying in record numbers and our economy has completely crumbled. It's easy to get caught up in the tsunami of panic and fear that has brought us all to our knees. 

I'm one of the very lucky few. I feel like my town is a bubble, isolated from what the rest of the world is experiencing. It's spring and people are out on their bikes, walking their dogs, singing in the streets (while keeping safe distance from each other). I have plenty of food and fresh clean water. Everyone I love is safe and healthy. 

BUT... I also know all that can change in an instant. So everyone needs to take care. Here's what my family and I are doing.

1.  Staying inside as much as we can
2. Washing our hands constantly and thoroughly
3. Washing clothes we wear outside right away
4. Disinfecting commonly used things daily (door nobs, phone, toilet handle...)
5. Keeping our distance from others when we do go out (dog walking and food shopping only)
6. Taking vitamin C daily
7. Eating healthy foods (veggies, fruits, foods high in vitamin C and protein)
   
8. Getting lots of rest
9. Knowing the difference between allergies and CV symptoms
10. Keeping in touch with friends and family through Zoom calls, texts and e-mail
11. Not reading too much news
12. No news before sleep
13. Getting physical activity every day
14. Keeping routines like meal planning, night TV...
15. Talking openly about our feelings with each other
16. Checking in with neighbors regularly (we all come out and make noise at 7PM)
17. Helping others when we can 
18. Accepting help from others (like my mom sharing her meals with us)
19. Not living in fear
20. Being mindful and having gratitude

Laughter and play have very important roles during times of such major stress. It's vital to release that tension in fun, healthy ways. I'm trying to write and do some kind of art every day. This has been helpful for me. I'm also not wearing black intentionally and keeping my clothes bright and cheerful. This helps my mental health.

I'm praying all of us stay healthy. Stay inside. Take care of yourself!

Staying Healthy!

As of yesterday my town is on lockdown. No one can leave the house except for emergencies or necessity like picking up medication or food. For the last week I've been ramping up my cleaning and trying to keep my family and myself healthy and safe.

Here's some things I'm doing.

We've all been ramping up our vitamin C intake and eating healthy, balanced meals. This was my breakfast this morning. Slow cooked organic oatmeal sweetened with dates, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mmmmm! We've been having some rain and cold so this warm bowl hit the spot.

I'm also very lucky to have access to good produce. Honeycrisp apples are my favorite and my husband makes sure we always have some in the house.

I made a "cleaning bin" that I have out in our living room. This has the last of my Clorox wipes, spray disinfectant, paper towels, rubber gloves and a spray bottle with 4tbsp bleach and the rest is distilled water (for spray disinfection). Anyone coming or going can find what they need in this bin.

After doing a LOT of research on what will kill the Coronavirus I found that just pure household Hydrogen Peroxide does a great job. I got 2 giant bottles of it at our Costco for $2, then bought spray bottles at the Dollar Store. This whole bottle was about $2 and will last a verrrrrrrry long time. Thinking outside of the box will help my whole family stay health!

This is my son's work area. He's staying healthy by taking his daily medications, taking hand sanitizer out with him and using it after washing hands when out. These lens wipes (also from Costco) have alcohol and are a disinfectant as well. 

We're all wiping our phones and computers down daily. I wipe down our counters, door nobs, fridge handle and other highly used things in the house daily. 

We're also sharing what we have with others. My son was letting friends use his hand sanitizer and I left an individually wrapped wet wipe out for our postal worker. 

I love to see the community coming together and helping each other. Crisis can either bring out the best in people, or the worst. So far I'm seeing the best in people.