Issue 9: Mindful Eating During a Pandemic

With the world wide coronavirus comes fear, anxiety, stress and the difficulties it imposed on our daily lives. In times like this, mindfulness can be quite helpful.

Mindfulness practices such as meditation, mindful walking, mindful eating etc. have one thing in common: they ground us in the here and now. Such practices enable us to lesson our fears, anxiety and stress level. Being mindful allows us to rest in the awareness of the present moment and get away from the distorted, and often exaggerated (fear driven) thinking that we are all capable of. Mindfulness helps us to have a more realistic, proportionate, and compassionate attitude toward dealing with the issues at hand.

So what can we do to help ourselves, our loved ones and society as a whole? First of all, in taking care of ourselves (nurturing ourselves) we become more available to our friends and family, in helpful and constructive ways. More concretely there are things we can do:

• Take the recommended precautions such as washing her hands frequently, avoiding crowds, etc.

• If you are experiencing emotional overload, stress and anxiety; try to minimize reading, listening to or talking about the coronavirus. We need to be informed yet not to the point that our fear, panic or anxiety takes over.

• Practicing mindful eating and formal meditation on a daily basis.

• Comfort eating (in moderation) is fine.

• Create a schedule and structure your day.

• Stay with the facts, not your fear. Try not to be swept away by fear and anxiety.

• Watch a movie, play a board game, exercise, read a book, go for a walk etc. to get away from all the talk, media attention and contagious nervous energy that surrounds us 24/7. In so doing, we give our mind, body and heart the rest it needs and deserves.

• Share your concerns and emotions with others to feel comforted and connected.

• Be aware if you are over thinking or engaged in continual self-talk about the virus. Excessive negative thinking and self-talk only serves to fuel more fear and anxiety. At such times, the practice of “letting go” can be quite helpful. When we become aware of our thoughts and self-talk; we have a choice to either continue obsessing or letting go.

• Our normal tendency is to try to think or talk our way out of our anxieties and fears by reading, thinking, talking, listening and analyzing the situation more and more. Such efforts usually dig us deeper and make us feel more trapped and stressed out. Letting go involves focusing our attention on something other than our anxieties.

• Go outside and notice the sunshine, the trees and the sky.

• And remember this pandemic is time-limited. This pandemic will end. We will get beyond this!

Eat Mindfully, Breathe Mindfully & Enjoy Life!