Things To Do During Self-Isolation | Best Cleaners Surrey

Currently, we don’t know how long the self-isolation due to the Corona Virus outbreak is going to last for, and most of us are either ‘working from home’ or just ‘staying in’, it gets boring and repetitive. Not to forget the social media messages, posts and videos make it all the more overwhelming and you just want a break from all this for a few minutes of your day.

It may sound all doom and gloom at the moment, but if you look at it from a different perspective, self-isolation is an opportunity for you to do a lot of things that you cannot do or don’t have the time to do in your routine life. Luckily, there are a lot of things that you can do in your home to keep yourself occupied and to get away from the depressing circumstances that everyone is going through at the moment. We have given you a guide and several ideas on what you can do during self-isolation.

There are many different things to get involved with during self-isolation. We’ve collated some of our favourites to share with you to help you keep busy during these times. We’ve collated all sorts of different things to do, such as:

• Keeping fit and healthy
• Being productive
• Making some great memories
• Discovering some new things!

There’s plenty in the below to keep you busy. See some of our favourite things to do below!

PE With Joe

What better way of starting the day than some physical activity? Joe Wicks starts his daily PE sessions live at 9 am (GMT) on YouTube. The sessions are half an hour each and can be enjoyed with your family. Since you can not go out to the gym for a while and you are bound to feel lazy and out of routine, it’s still a good idea to wake up early and be ready for some exercise to keep yourself fit and active for the day ahead.

Atonement Podcast

This is an excellent idea for self- reflection and your relationship with yourself. Francesca Specter is a journalist for your soul that is much needed at this time. Nowadays when all news and social media is full of negative and sad news, this podcast celebrates the joy of spending time alone.

Francesca has interviewed high profile interviews including Alain de Botton and Jada Sezer about how they spend their alone time and why it is important to them. It is an amazing way to enjoy solitude and get inspirational ideas. New episodes are released every Friday.

Disney+

If you can’t decide what to watch on Netflix and you find yourself staring at the menu for hours, worry not! Disney+ is in town now and what else could be better than watching those Disney classics from your childhood? Even better, watch it with your loved ones and kids, relive the moments from your childhood with your children or even on your own! Disney+ has enlisted all Disney movies from new to old. Subscription is only £59.99/year for the first year (in the UK).

This Too Shall Pass

This Too Shall Pass is a brilliant read by Julia Samuel. She talks about the struggle and that change is a way of life. Everything and every time in our lives pass no matter how good or how hard it is. There are some unavoidable milestones like children leaving home, retirement, first job and first love etc.

Life is complex and so are the choices we make or are made for us. Acclaimed psychotherapist Julia writes about conversations with her patients from their personal experiences on how they learned to adapt during the most difficult and transformative times of their lives. The book is an amazing read especially during this hard time of social change that everyone is going through, as it talks about family, love, work, health and identity of self.

Discover Podcast

You might have thought about it a lot of times but never got a chance to try it on, but now you can! There is a lot of variety in different genres of podcasting. Just pick your favourite from a big range, from comedy, murder mystery, celebrity interviews and political podcasts, there is something for everyone.

You even also try the podcast app Spotify, it is a great place to start into podcasting where you can listen to a local author, get inspiration regarding career or learn some bits about art, this is a brilliant opportunity to discover the world of podcasting and you will surely find something you love and enjoy.

Family Time

This is a good opportunity to make up for the lost family time due to busy schedules and busy lives. If you are self-isolating with family members now is the best time to do activities and things that involves the whole family and everyone can enjoy. How about some multiplayer games that you can enjoy with everyone else, such as some card games? How about Shoutout and Articulate? Or how about some old-time classics such as dumb charades or Name, Place, Animal and Thing (or any other variation of it). These are brilliant games that everyone can be a part of.

Take a Trip Down Memory Lane

Since you can’t go on a real trip at the moment you can still take a trip down the memory lane. Go through old albums and pictures of your holidays and memorable times, share them with kids and friends, have a laugh and relive every moment! Nothing beats the nostalgia and the sentiments that come with looking at old photographs!

Plan a Holiday

Your holiday plans might have been cancelled which is very disappointing but you can still plan a nice holiday for the future. You don’t have to plan a date or book anything but you can look for places you would like to go and what you would like to see there and what foods you would like to eat. Its human nature that when we are going through a tough time, thinking about the time when the hardship is over helps us to focus and maintain a healthy attitude in anticipation of the future. In short, it helps us in keep going!

Karaoke Night

Plan your very own karaoke night contest with family members, be silly and just enjoy the time with your loved ones. We all have a bathroom singer living inside us and now is the perfect chance to bring it out. You can even make a video and upload on social media to share with friends and get them inspired too!

Audible

Due to the pandemic, Audible has made loads of titles free to download. There is a huge range of audiobooks, literary classes, books for kids that are free to download. So, if you enjoy quality content but can’t get your head around reading, this is an excellent opportunity for you now. There are some brilliant classics too like Jane Eyre.

Self-Made on Netflix

Based on the life of Madam C. J. Walker, Self-Made is a limited edition mini-series on Netflix, released last Friday. It is a biography on her life by A’Lelia Bundles, starring Octavia Spencer. It talks about the hostile and disrespectful story of the black hair care pioneer and mogul Madam C. J. Walker, the rivalries, unrestrained marriages and petty family issues in the changing America, and how she became the first self-made black female millionaire.

Meditate With Calm

If you are struggling to sleep and are stressed due to the current situation like everyone else, Calm is the number 1 app to help you to go to sleep, relax and meditate. We all need a bit of relaxation so we can tune out and concentrate on yourself, make plans and decisions for the future when this is all over! However, inner peace seems impossible during this time, so this app will help you to concentrate, reflect on self and help with the anxiety.

Practice Yoga

Yoga does not only help with physical health, but it also helps you to relax. Yoga benefits with depression and when you are feeling low. There are several yoga classes on YouTube, Yoga with Adriene is one of the popular ones, although there are others too. Many Yoga instructors are now streaming live classes for yoga.

Puzzles

Doing some traditional puzzles like crosswords, sudoku, word search, scrabble, jumbled-up words and jigsaw are very good for cognitive health. You can either do the traditional newspaper or activity book puzzles or if you prefer going on the internet, you will find several apps where you can play games with friends or with strangers around the world.

Colouring

Adult colouring books were very popular a few years ago and although they might not be so much now, it is still a good idea to do some colouring. Apart from relaxation, it also helps you to build up your concentration and is an engaging leisure activity. If you do not have one lying around the house, Amazon has a huge variety of adult colouring books from animals, tattoo or henna designs, fashion houses or jungle themes or more.

Knitting

Knitting is a lifelong skill and a therapeutic hobby enjoyed by a lot of people. It not only gives you a sense of being productive but also helps you to concentrate and kill time while doing something useful. Knitting is often underrated and is classified as an activity only grannies would do, however, if you ask a person who is interested in crafts and they will tell you how calming this hobby is.

If you have ever tried knitting and failed or have thought of learning it but never got a chance, now is your perfect chance. You can buy a DIY knit kit and start learning simple things first, and before you know it, you will be making scarfs, gloves and what not!

Makeup/Hairstyle Tutorials

If you like to try different hairstyles, but find it difficult to do it to yourself, why not try some amazing and step by step tutorials on YouTube and learn the techniques with the experts. This also goes for makeup and nail art tips and tricks. You can spend some hours to practice those things that you have learned until it becomes an easy job. Remember, any time you spend in doing something you enjoy is worth a try!

House Party

Not everyone is lucky enough to have family around, and there are always friends who are like family too. We need loved ones around and have their support in times like this. But luckily, thanks to the internet, we can still talk to them and see them as if they are still with us. One such brilliant App is the House Party. You can invite friends and family to a video call and you can all see and talk to each other in a group! It’s the most exciting thing in these gloomy days!

Write a Blog

You can create your blog in your area of expertise and let people get inspired by your ideas on different things. For example, if you are a cooking expert you can start writing a blog on your favourite recipes and cooking hacks which people will love to try. Or you can start your own YouTube channel on DIY and crafts activities if that is your area of interest. There are so many things you can do that you enjoy and will benefit others, from the comfort of your home.

Take an Online Course

There are loads of top colleges that are offering free online courses, like Harvard, Princeton and Yale. There is a big variety of courses you can choose from Art and Design, Social Sciences, Engineering or Medicine. Or you can even look for free online courses on the internet and will find a huge range of courses that might be of interest to you such as interior decoration, crafts, writing etc.

Cooking

If you are one of those people who enjoy cooking or love a good meal, but never get enough time to try out new recipes due to busy work life, now is your chance to get that done. Take out that cooking book or the recipe link that you have bookmarked for ages and try out the new recipe now. There is nothing more satisfying than a delicious meal prepared all by yourself! It tastes even better when you have people to share it with, so if you have family in your home, you can share it with them.

Cleaning

It may not sound very exciting but in fact, it is the best time for you to deep clean a few things in your home. For example, you can clean your oven, hoover under the bed and take out and dust off all the books from that bookshelf that you have been planning to do for ages.

If you still have a pile of DVDs and CDs at your home, that just gathering dust, now is the time to clean them and put them away or get rid of them if not in use. Also, to help reduce the risk of spreading Coronavirus, wipe all the surfaces with a good disinfectant and mop the floors with a disinfecting floor cleaner.

Gardening

As we are now in spring and the weather is getting better, it is the perfect time for gardening. Since you cannot go out of the house, you can spend a few hours in your garden and tend to the plants and flowers, cut the grass and trim the hedge. If you are planning to plant some new plants, why not go for some fruit and vegetable plants too and grow your vegetable garden? Who knows when you might need it, as the shops may run out of their fresh fruit and vegetable stock!

Sorting Out

Self-isolation is also a good opportunity for you to sort out things around the house, especially your personal belongings. We often tend to clean and sort out the things that are visible around the house but neglect the ones that are hidden inside the drawers, cupboards and wardrobes etc. Especially, items of personal use that neglected the most.

We can now take this time to sort out various things in our lives such as sorting out our wardrobes; take everything out that is not in use and put them in separate bags for charity. Clean bedside drawers and bathroom and kitchen cabinets. Sort out your makeup and throw away all the old ones, also wash makeup brushes.

Take a Bubble Bath

How many times in a month do you get a chance to take a bubble bath in peace? Not too often, or maybe never! Now that you have time in your hands and kids are home too, you can probably take some time out for yourself and take a bubble bath whilst going through a magazine.

Make A Diary

When you clean up and sort things out, you are bound to find a diary or notebook for sure. There are several things you can do with this notebook like, write and maintain a daily diary log of things you did, how you made your self-isolation productive and enjoyable or use it to make lists of your things to do, write a story or poems to get your inner writer satisfied, or even turn it into a cooking book of your favourite recipes all in one place. There are a lot of things you can do with a diary, the choice is yours!

Have a Virtual Clean Up

How long have you been planning to do a ‘clean up’ of your social media lists of friends for? You can now spare a day or a few hours to delete all those unwanted people on your Facebook, Instagram and whatever social media you use so you are only connected with those you want to. This also goes for those unwanted junk emails that you have unwillingly and unknowingly subscribed to that keep filling your inbox; you can now unsubscribe to all of them one by one.

Finish DIY Projects

If you have any unfinished DIY jobs and you have been planning to finish them off for a long time, now is your best chance to get them done. There might be some pictures that are waiting to get in the frames or that shelf that’s half hanging and can do with some fixing or that corner of the wall that needs paint touching up, there are several little jobs that we keep neglecting and can do them now.

Do The Difficult Tasks

There are always some very difficult tasks that everyone hates and try their best to delay as much as possible. Now is the perfect opportunity to get those done, and then it should be done and dusted for a couple of months at least. Some of these hard chores can be, cleaning and reorganizing the shed or garage, reorganising the loft and removing all unwanted clutter and flipping the mattress around etc.

Take a Hobby

You may think that you are too old to find a new hobby now but think of it this way; there are things that you always wanted to do but never got a chance. So now is your time to try them out, and if it doesn’t work out, you have nothing to lose. At least, you spent your time trying and doing something you enjoy. How about finishing off the giant jigsaw puzzle or the Lego set that has been waiting for your attention for ages? Or starting painting or crafts activities that had always dreamed of trying one day.

You may even take out some old albums and go through them, organise them or you can even make a soft copy of them to keep them safe forever. Also, take out all the pictures from old phones, DVDs, tablets and cameras and keep them all in one place, like a hard disk or online on OneDrive or iCloud.

Work on Your IT Skills

Having above-average knowledge of IT never goes to waste. You can do several things in IT while being in isolation. How about practising and improving your typing skills, do an online course in web development or Office 365 or you can even take a course in Cyber Security Training. If you are planning to climb up the employment ladder buy your IT skills are a hindrance in your growth, this is a good chance for you to work on them and improve your set of skills.

Visit a Museum

Really? Yes, you can visit a museum during self-isolation although it’s only a virtual tour. Google Arts and Culture have partnered with 2500 museums and galleries from around the world and they have shared the pictures of their displays online for a virtual tour for people during self-isolation. You can screen share with a friend to make it more interesting and for a company. An added advantage of a virtual visit is that you can look up for different things for more information on Google, maybe even more than when you visit the place.

Pick up Litter While Walking Your Dog

If you have a dog that you take out for a walk or if you are helping a vulnerable elderly walk their dog for them, you can pick up litter while you are on the streets. Since fewer people are coming out on the roads there is less rubbish on our streets and is easier to collect and throw away. Why not try and clean our streets and make good use of our time.

Relax

Take an afternoon nap, have a lazy morning or sunbathe when the weather allows it. Normally we are always rushing around between dropping kids to school, getting ready for work, school run and whatnot, but now that everything has calmed down, so should you. Make the most of it while you can. It is said that a nap of 30 to 60 minutes is good for your health. Remember, there is very little in life that can’t wait and your health is the most important thing. Only if you are fit and healthy you will be able to do things around the house and look after your loved ones.

Write a Letter to Your Future Self

This one is brilliant! You have often been asked this question in job interviews; where do you see yourself in 10 years? Well, as it all seems doom and gloom at the moment and it’s hard to foresee where everyone will be in a few years but it is a good way to start thinking about the future and bring in some positivity to the current situation. Since all of us are feeling low at the moment, how about writing everything down in a letter and send it to your future self, maybe ten years older or more? You can tell yourself how you felt and what you did to make things better. When all of this is over, we might not even remember what exactly it felt like at that time, so this letter will be an excellent reminder for that. It will also tell us how strong you were in a tough time and how it made you a better and stronger person.

Volunteer

Since there is a shortage of staff everywhere including the frontline keyworkers, you can take the opportunity of being in isolation to help out those sectors. For example, you can call up your local care homes and find out if they need an extra pair of helping hands, you might be able to help even if you are not a trained carer like you can help an elderly in gardening or do their food shopping. Or if food and grocery stores need delivery drivers, as more and more people are now buying necessities online especially the elderly.

Donate

If you can afford, don’t forget to help out the people in need of money at this crucial time. There is a Coronavirus charity where you can donate money to help those suffering from this illness or you can give it to any charity of your choice.

If you know of any elderly that are suffering on their own, you can volunteer to help them by doing their shopping, picking up their medicine from the chemist or giving them a meal. Helping each other and the community out is the most satisfying thing and the best use of one’s time! Whatever you choose to do, remember social distancing is the key here, so you can leave the items on their doorstep or speak to them from at least a distance of 2 meters to keep them and yourself safe.

Practice Good Hygiene

It is important to practice good hygiene habits, even more so now than ever. To avoid getting infected, you need to adhere to the guidelines provided by the health services. Wash your hands frequently for at least 20 seconds, change clothes after coming home and if possible, take a shower, do not shake hands or hug anyone when you go out. Only step out of the house when extremely necessary and unavoidable. Clean your house and especially the surfaces that we touch the most, such as door handles; including car door and the front door of the house, car steering wheel and switch buttons around the house, with a good disinfectant.

Stay Safe

Now that we have given you plenty of ideas on how you can make your self-isolation productive and enjoyable, you can choose a few things that you liked the most. But remember whatever you do, stay safe, maintain social distancing and protect yourself and others around you. Remember, we can only reduce the isolation period by staying in as much as possible and leaving the house when extremely necessary. The virus spreads with people, if people stop moving around, the virus will stop spreading. We can save hundreds of lives by taking simple safety measures like washing hands frequently, changing clothes after coming home and staying in as much as possible. We are all in this together and together we can defeat the virus.

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