Happy Wednesday you beautiful people!

This week has been super eventful for us, Luciana and I welcomed our new baby boy to the world 12 days ago, and so everything has been pretty much revolving around him ever since. The amount of love and congratulations we’ve received is pretty much the greatest gift aside from the baby himself.

Welcoming new life to the world during such an extraordinary time has been very unique for us. Above all, he reminds us, our friends, and our families of what is really important. We look to the future.

In part three of this three part mini series, I wanted to wrap up by focusing on just that: the future, and what we can do in the meantime to keep us looking forward:

Accept that this is going to be psychologically exhausting

Social distancing has, and is going to continue to be exhausting. We don’t have an established timeline of when we can expect this to end and that might be the most challenging element to all of this. Whether you’re introverted, extroverted, or a beauty blend of both, being forced to stay away from our friends, families, and our favourite restaurants and shops is going to take a toll on all of us in the long run.

This is clearly not going to be a quick race, but a long marathon. A marathon is all about pace and endurance. This is why I believe it’s so important for us to keep our minds and bodies at the top of our priority list. It’s too easy to slip into unhealthy habits, and stress has a funny way of encouraging us all to slip up. We need to do our best to eat healthy, try to incorporate some exercise into our day, get some sunlight on our faces, and schedule daily time away from our devices. Our body and our mind are woven together and so maintaining a balance, and the health of each is essential to our ability to remain positive.  As our patience begins to run thin, we must remain aware of how our choices will influence our thoughts, and how our thoughts are influencing our attitude and our actions.

The only way around this is to go straight through it. And we WILL get through it.

Technology has become both a blessing and a curse these days. FaceTime and other social apps have enabled us to spend time with our loved ones despite the physical distance, so use them. Pick up your phone and call someone you care about. At the same time, if “Zoom parties” are taking a toll on you and hurting your mental health more than they’re helping, cut them out. Don’t feel pressured to partake in socialization that is stressing you out. You wouldn’t accept every invite to go out, so don’t accept every invite to chat.

It is OK to say “no thanks, maybe next time”.

On the flip side, if you do feel yourself craving some interaction but you don’t have a huge network of friends to call, start a dialogue on Facebook. Post a fun quiz or something to get conversations started. One brief uplifting interaction alone can really shift your mind into a positive gear. Use the extra time you’re spending at home to engage in lighthearted chats or meaningful conversations just the same.

This hasn’t been easy for any of us, and it isn’t going to get any easier until things begin to get better. Remember still, if we remain optimistic and look forward to a positive outcome, we will be rewarded. “Hope” isn’t just a flimsy sentiment. Hope comes with incredible physical and mental benefits so hang onto it, and believe in your ability to overcome anything.

Last but not least, we’re here for you.

Since most of you reading this will be our beloved clients and friends, family members, you know we’re here for you. Call, text, video call, email, Facebook message, DM on Instagram, everything and anything. If you need anything, you need help, or just feel like a chat. You know where to find us, and we’ll be waiting.

Love to you all, stay strong and for the love of God, STAY HOME. Let’s continue to give this social distancing thing a real chance. It appears as though it’s working, so the longer we stay diligent, the more quickly the worst of this may be behind us.

We’ll make it through this, and when we do, let’s schedule some time together and make the most of it.

Together, we will get through this. Good news is coming.