Amidst the global shut down owing to rising coronavirus cases, people are forced to stay at home to prevent it from spreading further. With 'work from home' being the latest norm for several organisations, UNICEF has come up with some positive tips for everyone to ensure that they do not feel overwhelmed by the recent turn of events.
According to the Johns Hopkins University, coronavirus has killed more than 14,700 people and infected over 341,000 globally.
Since Friday, UNICEF also decided to adopt the 'work from home' approach and requested all its "New York staff to work remotely for the next four weeks as a precautionary measure."
In her 'work from home' video diary UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta H Fore said: "These are challenging times for all of us but we are committed to the health and well being of our teams and of wider new York community. I want to be clear that we are not closing shop. We are very much still in business, but just need to do things differently for a while."
UNICEF staff counselors share Five-point plan
In her latest vlog, Fore shared five tips for mental health and well-being during the self-imposed lockdown as advised by the UNICEF staff counselors. Stating that UNICEF staff from around the world had a virtual meeting on mental health and well-being, Fore said: "Many of us may be feeling anxious or overwhelmed, sad, calm, stressed, confused, bored, lonely, or all of these things at the same time. To help us cope, our staff counsellors have recommended that we each create a well-being plan for ourselves, our families and maybe even our teams."
Admitting that tip number one was quite hard for her to follow, Fore said that it required one to either stick to routines or start new ones. "Get up and go to sleep at a regular time. Get dressed. Exercise, take a shower, do your hair, do the dishes. Involve the children so that you have a family plan," she said.
UNICEF's plans video get-togethers
Urging people to stay connected despite being in quarantine, Fore said: "Have video chats with your family, friends and colleagues. Open up about how you are feeling and ask others how they are feeling. Check in with colleagues regularly especially those who are alone."
"Engage in hobbies and things you enjoy. Do karaoke, read, cook, do puzzles, sew or knit Engage in well-being practices. Use meditation and well-being apps, exercise, keep a gratitude journal by writing down three things you are grateful for every day. Congratulate yourself and others on having a mega day," she went on.
Asking people to ditch constant worrying during the present crisis, Fore rather asked them to set up a worry window. "Write down all your worries throughout the day and give yourself permission to think about them during a specific time of day. It's a very well-known technique and it works. Remember lots of things have not been cancelled like music, family, reading, singing, laughing and hope. Make sure you enjoy them."
