2020, can hurry up finish already anot?

Since February, this virus called COVID-19 entered our lives. Then came all these three-letter words: WFH, HBL, SHN, LOA. And our favourite: CCB. Walau, my head paining trying to remember what they mean.

Every day limpeh read the news, so many things to process. First, the Gahmen announced 3 budgets. Then, on May 26 got ministerial statement. Now got Phase 1, 2 and 3 for the reopening of Singapore. My friends on the WhatApps keep on talking about those Covidiots who never wear masks or sending me more news, I don’t know is real or not.

I hear some businesses have closed down, which means some people have lost their jobs. Hopefully they can find help from the SGUnited Jobs. But those working at home also got problems. Parents have to do work and jaga their children at the same time! Then my colleagues keep asking me to get on a Zoom call, Google call, FaceTime call… aiyah can just send me an email anot!

The situation like very jialat. Limpeh feel like a lot of people stress and damn tired, and feel like they doing a lot of juggling. The way people describe it to me sounds like what angmohs like to call ‘burnout’.

So limpeh asked Celeste Chong, founder of The Inside Job, how to fix it. Last time limpeh know her from The Butter Factory, where bodies also talk, but now she actually helps people heal from the inside. Not bad hor?

I tell her many people are stressed, how to recharge? So she shared her top 5 things to do:

1. 20-min Home Workouts

Now that most of us are all stuck working from home, it is easy to get carried away sitting in front of the screen from day to night. If you’re like me, and find it harder to commit to a 60-min workout without being in an actual class, I suggest 20-min workouts. I like to do a balance of both yin and yang. I do 20 mins of shadow boxing HIIT, followed by 20 mins of yin yoga for deep stretching.

This is the one I like:

And the one I usually do for my yin yoga stretch as I have tight hamstrings:

Limpeh’s Tip: CCB-ers, if you need more lobang, check out Sweat Like Siao.

2. A Quick Shower

This works wonders. When I find that I’m getting lethargic or even a little moody, I take a quick shower and notice I immediately feel better and more refreshed after.

3. Sunshine and Trees

If I stay cooped up indoors without getting out for 2 days, I notice the effects. So, I go for a short 15-min afternoon run at the park nearby, so I get my dose of Vitamin D and nature. And if I am too lazy, then even getting outside and being in the sun for 10 mins helps.

4. A Sound Bath

A sound bath is a relaxation and stress reduction technique where participants ‘bathe’ in the sound waves produced by instruments like gongs, singing bowls, chimes and drums. Through a combination of rhythms and frequencies, sound tools can enable the brain to move into the deeper brain wave frequencies, and can shift our normal waking Beta state to the Alpha (creative, relaxed state which encourage the healthy functioning of the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the rest and digest mode), Theta (meditative state) and Delta (deep sleep, where healing and self-regeneration occurs).

Sound baths are best experienced in person, but since we can’t do that during the CB, the next best thing are online sessions. Check out this short recording I made to give you an idea of what it’s like. If you’d like to hear more, you can join a free session on 28 May!

5. Meditation

I usually do this at the start of the day. And on days if I start feeling tired and unable to focus in the afternoon, I’ll listen to one of my own guided meditation and sound bath recordings. It gets me into a deep relaxed state and I feel mentally refreshed and more productive after.

From experience, I recommend guided meditations for beginners. There are many free guided meditation resources available — each with different durations. You can start with 5 mins a day. The most important thing is to make it a habit. You can do it lying down, sitting on a chair or sitting cross-legged on the floor. Costs nothing to start!

This CB may end on 1 June, but we won’t be going back to regular programming anytime soon. So do what you can to find some balance!

Limpeh like Celeste’s suggestions — every little bit will count.

If you need more help, do reach out. Don’t be shy. If you’re not sure where to start, perhaps this survey about Mental Resilience might help you gauge where you are at.

For starters, Limpeh say, slow down and then …. breathe in and breathe out.