Listen to live music
“Music is always very calming,” says Albers. “It’s one thing to listen to music at home, but when you’re surrounded by people, dancing and enjoying it—that’s the part that we’ve been missing.” Research has shown that listening to live music can reduce stress. Your safest bet: an outdoor venue where patrons are masked and it’s easy to socially distance. 20 minutes: Listening to live music this long can hike your well-being by 21 percent—even more than doing yoga or dog walking.
Hug someone
Cuddling with your pet has been great, but how much have you been craving an old-fashioned hug? Once it’s safe and both parties are vaccinated, go ahead and hug someone! “The human touch is soothing and helps release serotonin and dopamine, those feel-good chemicals in the brain,” says Albers. Hugs can strengthen your relationships and even lower your blood pressure. 20 seconds: Hug this long for maximum health benefits.
Do a mental health checkup
From social isolation to balancing work with homeschooling, the pandemic has taken its toll on our mental health. In a Parade/Cleveland Clinic/Ipsos 2021 Healthy Now survey, 50 percent of respondents reported feeling more stressed, anxious and/or depressed during the pandemic. It can be helpful to check in with a therapist to discuss everything from those newfound stresses to the unknown future. And even if you’ve done teletherapy, there is added benefit to meeting in-person. Albers says face-to-face sessions provide a safe place to open up and give clients a chance to practice being with people, which “we’re all a little rusty at.”
Pay attention to your smile
Smiling is a mood booster. And as soon as the pandemic eases, you’ll have more reasons to flash your pearly whites. See your dentist to get your smile looking its best and to check your oral health, especially if you’ve put off your appointments during the pandemic. “I’ve seen an increase in emergency visits for pain, infections or swelling that could have been prevented with routine visits,” says Christopher Norman, DDS, a Denver-based dentist. Teeth brushing should be right up there with hand washing in terms of regular post-pandemic hygiene. “Brush your teeth two to three times a day for at least two minutes and floss before,” says Los Angeles–based dentist Bill Dorfman, DDS.
Pamper yourself
You’ve been letting your roots grow out and accumulating tension in your shoulders from being hunched over your makeshift home workstation. Once you’re fully vaccinated, give yourself some TLC with a visit to a safe spa where practitioners are masked and hygiene protocols are in place. Not only can a massage ease sore muscles, it can reduce stress, enhance immune function and increase circulation and flexibility. And after a year of our faces being covered in masks, with side effects like maskne (mask-induced acne), Albers has been telling clients to get a facial. “You feel better about talking to people when your skin feels clear,” she says.
Put on some real clothes
“It’s easy to curl up in the couch and get stuck at home. But when you put on some clothes that make you feel really good, you want to go out in the world again,” says Albers. Meghan Murphy, author of Your Fully Charged Life, agrees. “Wearing pants that button again has been my turning point in my ‘pandemic recovery,’” she says. “It signaled to me that life was inching toward normal and that I would eventually leave the house again—in shoes, not slippers!”
Plan a getaway
“My wife and I have been imagining a trip to Margaritaville, Florida. We planned to go even before the pandemic to celebrate our 55thanniversary, so once it’s safe to travel again, being there will be a dream come true for us,” says Larry Sciancalepore, 78, a retired education administrator in Hoboken, New Jersey. Vacations have been linked to improvements in heart health, reduced depression and can lead to a longer life. And even having a trip to look forward to—and plan—can be enough to boost your positivity.
Sources
ResearchGate: “Attending a Concert Reduces Glucocorticoids, Progesterone and the Cortisol/DHEA Ratio” ResearchGate: “Vacations Improve Mental Health Among Rural Women: the Wisconsin Rural Women’s Health Study” ScienceDaily: “Psychologists Find Smiling Really Can Make People Happier” ScienceDaily: “Medical Proof a Vacation Is Good for Your Heart” PLOS One: “Receiving a Hug Is Associated With the Attenuation of Negative Mood That Occurs on Days With Interpersonal Conflict” National Library of Medicine: “More Frequent Partner Hugs and High Oxytocin Levels Are Linked to Lower Blood Pressure and Heart Rate in Premenopausal Women” Cleveland Clinic: “For Stress Relief, Research Says: ‘Hug It Out’” Kaiser Family Foundation: “The Implications of COVID-19 for Mental Health and Substance Abuse” O2 The Blue: “Science Says Gig-Going Can help You Live Longer and Increases Well-Being” EurekAlert!: “Take a Vacation—It Could Prolong Your Life” SAGE Journals: “A Study of the Impact of the Expectation of a Holiday on an Individual’s Sense of Well-Being”
