Several states this week began shifting from mask mandates and levels of shut-down to a more open stance for businesses and easing some of the mask mandates. Further, the COVID vaccine continues to be administered throughout the United States. The US has administered more vaccinations than anyone else in the world. As of today, almost 23 Americans of every 100 have received the vaccination.
CDC reports there has been a six-week downward trend in cases. The current 7-day average is 66,348 cases, a 73.4% decline. The 13.5% decrease in the 7-day average number of daily cases reported compared with the prior week provides an encouraging sign of recent progress. We can rejoice together that progress continues all around us.
However, many continue to be fearful as well. For the past year, many have lived with the constant worry and pressure of either personally catching COVID or a friend or loved one catching it. This fear alongside many mitigation efforts such as masks and staying home have placed these individuals in a perpetual state of high caution.
Therefore, as bad as the COVID-19 virus is, there are other problems that we see tend to come alongside this general pandemic. General uneasiness. Anxiety. Depression. Loneliness. Drug and alcohol abuse. Increased spouse and child abuse. Pornography. Suicide.
As some states increasingly open up, as the variants of SARS-CoV-2 increase, and the vaccination rollout continues, how can you best protect your mind, emotions, and body? Let me suggest a few ideas again for each.
Protecting Your Mind
Keep it busy as you can – read, solve puzzles, play word games, crosswords, Sudoku, journal, and study something. Research something online that you have always wanted to know about. Read about it. Watch YouTube videos that help teach you.
Of course as a Christian there is Bible reading, Bible memorization, Bible meditation, and prayer. Read devotions online. Start a Bible-reading plan. Watch sermons online of your own church if possible and then others that you enjoy.
Read the psalms. They will help put words to the thoughts and emotions of your heart.
Pray through your concerns. What is facing you now? What may face you in the future? Put words to your thoughts as you talk to God.
Pay attention to what you are thinking. Where is your focus? Are you thinking primarily about the pandemic, the mitigation efforts, the stock market, your finances, and everything else related? Or, are you thinking about God, God’s faithfulness, God’s love, Jesus Christ, special and favorite verses, and all the things for which you can be grateful?
Protecting Your Emotions
One of the best ways to protect your emotions begins in your mind. If you do the things listed above, protecting your mind has a direct effect upon your emotions. Our emotions function as a response to what we think and what we want.
The second best thing to help your emotions revolves around community. Reach out and talk to people. The very worst thing you can do is stay alone and become isolated. God made each of us for community. We need each other.
Think of this in two ways: you need people – but they also need you!
Reaching out to others will help you and them. You need the conversation.
Therefore, be courageous and reach out to someone. They will be just as happy as you are that someone cares, wants to talk, and values relationship.
How can you do that? Call someone. Text. Send a Facebook post. Face-time. Make a Zoom call between multiple friends. Just do something.
If you are a pastor or a leader of some kind in your church, please make these kinds of interactions available to the people in your church.
Protecting Your Body
Why is it important to protect your body? The reason you need to protect your body is because it houses your inner man. You will think best, feel best, and overall do best when your body functions at its highest levels for you.
How can you protect your body?
- Begin by doing some kind of exercise. Do something. Walk around your house, your yard, down the hallway of your apartments, down your sidewalk, or through your neighborhood. Use something for weights and do some kind of competitive exercise. I’m still trying to keep up a certain number of steps each day. I’m grateful for a big yard, quiet neighborhood in the country, and opportunity. Your situation may look much differently. It is important to do something though.
- Pay attention to when and how much you are eating. Try not to snack all day. Eat normally while watching your portion size. If you are at home and not doing as much physical work as normal, you do not need as many calories. Try limiting yourself. If you do love snacking – which I do – try to snack on healthy foods. For instance, yesterday, I chose celery.
- Be careful with your sleeping patterns. Try not to stay up late, sleep in longer than normal, and get your sleeping habits messed up. Be careful drinking too much caffeine at night and actively engaging electronics up until bed time.
- Get up in the morning, take a shower, get dressed, and function as normal as possible.
- Practice what the government is asking you to do to help mitigate the virus (social distancing, staying home when necessary, washing hands, etc.).
- At times you may not feel like doing that, and, although that is okay not to feel it, it is important for you to go ahead and do it anyway. Movement helps.
Protect your mind, your emotions, and your body. These together will help you respond positively during this pandemic. Paul suggests many of these same things when he discusses anxiety in Philippians 4. His advice is good for all of us to consider and practice.
KevinCarson.com | Wisdom for Life in Christ Together