The pandemic has us all scrambling, that’s for sure. It seems that, literally overnight, our lives have not only been disrupted, but also threatened by an invisible and deadly enemy. Literally overnight, we’ve become shut-ins and recluses in order to save our lives and lives of our loved ones.

Naturally, this kind of stress and the lack of social interactions are weighing heavily on us, and some of us are taking this whole ordeal much harder than others. Social isolation isn’t easy to overcome, but we must find ways, lest we succumb to the stresses of our situation.

But how do we go about it? How do we reignite social relationships when interaction with people face to face can bring harm to all of us? The answer lies in these 5 ways to beat social isolation during a pandemic, so let’s have a look at them.

Acknowledge Your Feelings

They say that admitting you have a problem is halfway toward fixing it.

One of the first things people do when they face strong and negative feelings within themselves is to deny them. Most of us feel that, if we ignore the negative feelings we’re harboring, they’ll simply go away and disappear. 

But, nine times out of ten, that’s not how it works. These feelings might be pushed aside, but, when they return, they’ll be more powerful than before, as well as eat away at us slowly and subtly until they grow so powerful that they cannot be ignored anymore.

And that’s when the real trouble starts; now you’re facing extremely heightened levels of anxiety - anxiety about the security of your job, anxiety about getting infected with COVID, anxiety about family members succumbing to the virus, anxiety about not seeing your friends in a long time. 

All those feelings will pile on you and weigh you down, making it harder and harder to come to terms with them as time goes on. From there, you’re risking developing severe anxiety disorders that will make your day to day life even harder, and that will persist even when the quarantine is lifted.

That said, the best course of action to fight our feelings is to come to terms with them. It’s alright to feel anxious about things - that’s a good thing! It means that we aren’t okay with these situations, and that we shouldn’t be. This is our brain’s way of telling us we should do something about the whole situation. 

You might feel sad about not being able to socialize with your friends and family. That’s alright, too. Of course you’d be sad; they’re probably sad about not being able to hang out with you, too. But, that sadness will pass, and so will the quarantine, and, if we’re all doing our part, the quarantine will end that much sooner. 

Essentially, the most important thing to remember going into quarantine is that you shouldn’t be afraid to show and process your feelings. Once you’re able process them, you’ll feel like a massive weight has been lifted off your shoulders, and you’ll be able to face any hardships head on and remain mentally healthy and stable. 

Find Alternate Ways of Reconnecting

The fact that you can’t go out doesn’t mean you should not find alternate ways of reconnecting with your friends. 

Luckily, we live in the age where the internet and social media are an inescapable part of our lives. And, if you think more closely about it, you’ve already embraced cyber life already!

Think about it: you probably text your friends and family everyday, already, so there’s really no reason to feel that detached from them. And, yes, the physical connection might not be there anymore, due to the quarantine, but you can still maintain a certain type of social connection with them through texting, video calls, TikTok challenges. Facebook posts and many other forms of online interaction.

Of course, if you have older members of the family, this might be the best time to start teaching them the ways of the internet. Some older people are a little resistant to learning to use modern devices and the internet, but don’t feel frustrated - think of it as a bonding activity, something you and they are much in need of during this difficult time.

However, we also must issue a warning - too much digital interaction can lead to a person being completely absorbed in their cyber life, which can displace their real-life personality. While online interactions are good for your mental health, do take care to put your devices down every once in a while, and step back, and have some time away from the noise. 

Find New Hobbies

Quarantine time is the perfect time to start picking up new hobbies, and broadening one’s interests. 

While locked down, you’ll find that you have a lot more time on your hands than you had before. If you used to work in an office, and now you’re working from home, you’ll probably notice that commuting and getting ready in the morning took a significant chunk of time from your daily routine.

Time that you now somehow have to fill. So, in order to fill it, why not pick up a new hobby - something you were interested in before, but never had time to get your hands on!

This new hobby can be anything - from video games, to sowing, cooking, woodworking, sculpting, working out, reading - anything that you can do within your own apartment, house or yard.

Perhaps you were always interested in comic books, but never knew where to begin. Well, have a look here, and check out these excellent volumes that will offer you hours of entertainment. 

All in all, the most important thing here is to find something that you will gladly engage with in your spare time, something that will give you a sense of structure; something you’ll look forward to in the lonely hours of quarantine. 

Form a Pod

The “pod” we’re referring to here is a group of people quarantining together, following the same or similar health safety protocols. For those who have large families or friend groups that they simply cannot do without, forming pods might be an excellent idea. 

The main advantage of forming pods is the fact that you are always close to the people you love and care for the most. Another advantage lies in the fact that you’re all like-minded individuals, and that you’re all trying to create a safe and virus-free environment within your habitat. 

This can be of a tremendous advantage for those who just cannot do without real-life social interactions with their loved ones, or for elderly persons that cannot get to grips with the modern technologies and the internet. 

Podding also has its disadvantages, too. Just like we crave the presence of other people in our lives, we also require some alone time. Being locked down with the same people all the time can create friction, and put strain on your social relationships the more the quarantine drags on.

Talk to a Professional

Finally, never underestimate the help a professional can provide you.

If you’re feeling extremely lonely, if you’re having trouble with keeping your sleep schedule straight, if you’re feeling heightened levels of anxiety, it might be best that you talk to a professional.

You might need one session or you may need many, but we guarantee you that having a good talk with someone who is trained in dealing with mental health and mental health disorders will have an extremely positive effect on you. 

These people might recognize an onset of a disorder before you even notice anything, and help you deal with it before it turns into something that can seriously affect your health and your life. 

Final Words

And, that’s all we have for you today! There are many things you can do to keep yourself healthy during these difficult times, but we believe that these 5 steps should form the core of your efforts during the pandemic.