On a day as gloomy and grey as today—22 days into shelter-in-place—color is perhaps the simplest, most significant antidote to the rainy day blues. I have no complaints working from home or staying in 24/7, but my peace with the situation comes from a place of privilege. (This I acknowledge and am endlessly grateful for.) It also helps that I’m an introvert by nature: solitude is my strength, my comfort, a forever happy place. Isolation is my ideal, and while it’s not for everyone, it currently is.

Here are a few tips on how to stay sane while staying safe:

1. CREATE STRUCTURE

For most, this may be the hardest to implement because so much of our lives are pushed upon us. From the time we enter grade school and for the majority of our lives thereafter, we’re told what time to wake up, how many hours we should study or work, et cetera. The idea of tabula rasa, then, becomes daunting; without someone over our shoulders, we’re aimless.

Or so we think.

Learning to move through each day with intention requires discipline. Strive for it, but allow freedom for flexibility. You’re allowed to have moments of lassitude, but approach without guilt. Bask in it; revel in it. The sooner you grant yourself the permission to be lazy, the quicker you move through the lethargy.

My recommendations? Bookend the beginning and end of your days with a ritual. It can be as simple as cleansing your face or lighting a candle at the start of your day, and ending it with a hot shower. Then, punctuate the afternoons so you feel present: read a few chapters of a book before returning to the screen. Make a different cup of tea than the one you’ve been nursing all morning. Or, my favorite: stretch. (I’m currently on the market for a portable ballet barre so I’m not using the end of my kitchen countertop as a makeshift one.)

Productivity isn’t the goal, it never truly is. Mindfulness is.

2. JOURNAL OFTEN

Which means putting actual pen to paper, the old-fashioned way. Forget any and all associations you’ve ever had on the concept of journaling and try it, even if just to help write the anxiety, monotony, or navel-gazing out of your system. At worst, your journal will just be something you shred and toss after this quarantine. At best, it’s a new habit—and something to look back on years later, after we’ve survived the unknown.

For daily musings, I’m partial to the Leuctturm1917 A5 notebooks with dotted pages. For special occasions, Clairefontaines are the ultimate treat: their paper is superb, if you’re like me and that sort of thing matters to you.

3. INDULGE DAILY

I’m not sure if this is a sentiment exclusive to immigrant, second-generation families or middle-class Americans, but I was raised with the idea to reserve special items for a special—read: worthy—occasion. Let this pandemic serve as a reminder that every day is worth it, because it’s a goddamn miracle that we wake up every morning.

Now, this philosophy doesn’t mean consuming with extravagance to the detriment of your health or finances. It simply means approaching your day-to-day, even post-corona, with celebration and gratitude. This can manifest in the most material of ways: using the expensive cream you were gifted, masking more often than you used to, wearing the clothes that still have their tags because you were saving them for that special occasion, or eating meals off the “fancy” china that was once gathering dust in the cabinet.

Or, interpret it as doing the most you possibly can—no more excuses—to better yourself. Spend the extra five minutes making a breakfast smoothie or an additional two making your bowl of vanilla coconut yogurt all the more colorful. Start taking vitamins or invest in supplemental mushroom powders. Incorporate essential oils into your home and into your personal care routine (I discovered Saje this time last year in LA and have been enamored with their Pocket Farmacy set.) Light a candle; ambiance is the ultimate mood-booster.

4. INCORPORATE COLOR

Now, this one is not for the minimalist or faint of heart: but there is truth to color therapy in lifting dull spirits and unhappy moods. If a colorful wardrobe isn’t for you, perhaps a bold lipstick or colorful (DIY) manicure is just the touch you need to change things up a bit. Or, if you’re able to find fresh flowers during your once-in-a-blue-moon outing for necessities, pick up a bouquet to liven up your space. (I was so lucky to have received lilies for my birthday. They’re not colorful in the least, but the green does add life to an otherwise all-white space—and they’re stunning.)

5. READ REGULARLY

The pressure to be your Most Productive Self can be overwhelming. Sure, you can teach yourself something new (even if it’s a TikTok dance), but if you want to feel inspired, invigorated, or satiated with minimal effort, pick up a book and let yourself go for a few hours. The hardest part is getting started: once you’re in, phone-free, you’ll be swept into another place, a different space.

6. SLEEP WELL

Ironic, coming from an insomniac—but without the stress that comes from being in an office daily, or the sensory overload that just comes with being around people (insomniac and introvert, here!), my sleep has improved. It’s nowhere near what the CDC recommends, but it’s monumental progress nonetheless. If there was a time your body needed the most rest, it’s now. Sleep well so that your mind, body, soul can repair and rebuild.

Start by establishing an evening ritual to ready your body for relaxation. Mine is so regimented that my boyfriend knows better than to disrupt it: I head into the bathroom; turn on my Himalayan Salt night light (and nothing else); mist a homemade blend of eucalyptus and peppermint into my shower; take a hot shower (on current rotation is Nécessaire’s Eucalyptus Body Wash and Body Exfoliator); apply my skincare (treatment, serum, oil—then massage my face using the gua sha technique—all before applying body lotion); then slip into a robe. I’ll pitter-patter around the house until my hair is 25% air-dried (during this time I’ll clean or de-clutter) before sliding under the covers.

Yes, I still scroll through Instagram. No, I know I shouldn’t, but I do. It’s my one vice.

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xx

{inspo images via @sophiebillebrahe and @cafecitron}