Tips To Prevent Bad Habit Relapses While Being Stuck At Home "Quarantining"

We are living in one of the most challenging times in the world due to the devastating Coronavirus. Being stuck at home, can easily allow us to become unproductive and cause the habits we have built this year to easily fall right out the window. I am currently experiencing this first hand as I'm not following through with my main habits and goals for this year and am currently adopting new and unhealthy ones. It may seem like there is no hope, that these are the end of times, however, what would life be like if we stopped for a second and got a breath of fresh air outside for once. The answer is novelty! Going outside has become a lot more stimulating than it was when things were completely normal. We can see the sun or go for a walk or a run and feel energized. When we shut off the consistent negative news, we realize just how humble our minds have become. We are more suggestive to new activities that offer joy and less adherent to our old ways because times are drastically changing and it has become even more important now than ever to become adaptable to our environments.

Some issues personally that I've been relapsing back into have been nonstop video games and sitting. Tiktok has also been taking up a lot of my time and attention like candy honestly. I stopped going to the library to study, I stopped reading on a daily basis, and I stopped trying to constantly find ways to improve myself. These are definitely challenging times we are living in where true discipline and adaptability will ensure success. Maintaining a social life in these difficult times is another issue too. I definitely find it difficult to keep my head in the game without seeing my friends striving towards their goals or even watching my inspirations on social media and Youtube have to make drastic changes in their lifestyles by constantly staying home. It's definitely scary to imagine the world staying like this in the near future.

Here are some helpful tips to avoid relapses into bad habits:

1. Track what you spend most time on during the day: a calendar may help with this but still it is extremely important to understand where your time is going. Are you doing everything you planned to do for the day? Are you tackling your biggest goals that will make everything else easier? By knowing where your time is going, you will be able to optimize when you know you should be doing work and when you feel the least productive. For me, I noticed I'm most productive in the morning so if I have a strong start to my morning I can keep it going to help set a good tone for the rest of my day.
2. Create something - you don't need to be the one who creates a cure but you can be the one who comes out of this disaster with a new skill or a new hobby. Bonus points if your creations add value to other's lives!
3. Replace old bad habits - if you play too much video games, replace the activity with something that gives you a similar rush and makes you feel more accomplished and healthy. A good example of this would be exercise.
4. Get outside - if you are stuck at home constantly surrounded by your habits i.e. the TV, video games, or unhealthy junk food. You will be more likely to slip back into those bad habits. Take charge of your life and go somewhere new without all these simple consumer pleasures so readily available.
5. Remember it takes time - if you apply all these tips, remember that you won't immediately see results. You must practice each tip daily and over time you will see positive habits beginning to form once again in your life.

I hope you find something helpful here! Stay happy, productive, and most of all stay safe.