by Gerald D. Bloch

The well-ordered life and routines we have established have suddenly changed in the era of COVID-19. Everything now is different and less predictable. Our daily routines have been altered and our financial, physical, and psychological well-being—and that of our family and friends—is threatened. We can no longer travel, have far fewer social outlets, and cannot be certain when things will return to normal, or even if there will be a “normal” to return to.

Many of the expectations we have about our futures can no longer be counted on as a given. The fluid nature of the crisis is likely to cause permanent change. I hope that, by the time this article runs, freedom in our daily routines will have increased. But, either way, we can learn some things about coping during a pandemic.

For many of us, change is stressful. Yet during such times, what worked for us in the past may no longer be viable. So instead of fearing change, instead of having to react and adapt, use the changing nature of our world and the crisis in which we find ourselves to develop new and healthier strategies and life choices. I’d recommend revisiting nine components of life.

1. Reflect on Relationships in Your Household

Do you live with your partner? Do your kids live with you? Sheltering in place is very difficult for many of us. Maybe there is tension around these relationships. The loss of privacy and inability to escape close quarters can be quite stressful.

Many of us avoid dealing with tension in our relationships with spouses, partners, and/or children. But it’s much harder to do that when you’re confined together, especially for an extended period. So instead of avoiding it, deal with it. Give some deep thought to the relationships you have with those you’re closest to, where the tension is and why. How much of it is “co-created”, i.e., the part you’re responsible for and what you can do to change it. What works about these relationships and what doesn’t? Consider whether relationship patterns are so fixed that change is unlikely, or whether a course correction is possible. Perhaps therapy might be helpful. How much of it is about communication, or the lack of it? This could be the time to be open and honest by sharing your thoughts.

Personal relationship issues can be very tough, even provocative to deal with. Changes brought about by such an external crisis often fosters a welcome level of introspection that enables us to deal with and make healthy decisions about these relationships.

2. Reach Out to Others

In his new book, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin explains, “we enjoy being with others—like all primates, we are a social species—and positive social interactions release opioids in the brain, especially in the brain’s most important reward center . . . .” Daniel J. Levitin, Successful Aging: A Neuroscientist Explores the Power and Potential of Our Lives (Dutton 2020). Studies have shown that people who have limited social contacts tend to suffer from depression. Having to limit social interaction and stay at home, we are not able to spend time with co-workers, friends, or extended family, or even to sit down for a half-hour surrounded by others at a coffee shop.

How long has it been since you’ve talked to your first cousin, your favorite aunt, or the close friend from law school you used to spend so much time with? Call them. Video chat. Catch up. Find out how they are doing. Renew those relationships. Rediscover that connection. You’ll feel much better and they will too. It may not replace an in-person meeting, but it will be well worth the minimal effort and time it took.

3. Re-focus on Food and Nutrition

With restaurants virtually shut down except for takeout, I don’t know a single person who eats the same way they did pre-pandemic. You may not be the best cook in the world (you may even hate it). But, since your food acquisition patterns have changed by necessity and you’re spending more time at home, you would do well to look at what you’re eating and make improvements, especially if you’ve had food/eating/health/weight issues in the past.

Start by avoiding processed food, frozen pizza, and other ready-made food that you can heat up and quickly eat. I like and live by Michael Pollan’s seven-word mantra: “Eat Food, not too much, mostly plants.” See Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto (The Penguin Press 2008). There are thousands of quick, easy, and inexpensive ways to do it. Make a salad, for example—prewashed greens, cherry tomatoes, onion, and cucumber, squeeze lemon and drizzle olive oil, add salt and pepper. That’s ten minutes and about $7.50 with leftovers for another meal or two. Search the internet for an ingredient—for example, “chickpeas”—and you’ll find dozens of recipes you can use it in. YouTube can teach you just about anything you need to know about food and cooking.

4. Embrace Exercise and Movement

At the time you’re reading this, you still may not able be able to go to the office and gym/fitness/yoga studios may still be shut down. You can only shelter in place for so long. Now is a good time to develop new habits and routines around exercise and movement.

Take walks. Better to do it in parks and public spaces. Try different and new places for a change of scenery. Enjoy being in nature, listening to the birds sing, smelling the fragrance of freshly cut grass or the sea if you’re near the beach.

Intensify your walks. Increase your heart rate by walking up inclines or steps. Many parts of Orange County are very hilly. Embrace the challenge of walking up them and experience the increase of oxygen in your lungs, the blood coursing through your veins, the sweat on your brow. Push yourself a bit more each time and you’ll see and feel many positive changes.

Add other movement to your walks. As you walk, put more of a swinging movement into your arms. Stop to lift one leg and hold, then the other, to practice balance. Roll your shoulders. Turn your head from side to side and lift your chin up toward the sky then down toward your chest. There are a myriad number of ways you can move your body during your walks to add flexibility, reduce tension, and improve general fitness.

Ride a bike. Dust off that bike hanging in the garage and take it out for a spin. You don’t need to dress in lycra or spend $10,000 on a carbon fiber bike to get the benefits. There are many bike paths throughout the county that will take you to places you’ve never been.

Yoga/Fitness. The studios may have closed but that doesn’t mean you’re out of luck. YouTube has hundreds of classes you can follow using your phone or other device from the privacy of your home or the nearest park.

5. Practice Mindfulness

There are other practices you can develop to permanently put yourself in a better place, reduce stress, and enhance your lifestyle.

Breathwork. If the name sounds a bit new-agey, regulating your breath is a time-tested, ancient method of relaxing, reducing anxiety, infusing your body with a higher level of oxygen, and expelling more toxins (carbon dioxide) from your body. It will make you feel better immediately. It involves breathing in a more conscious way and in specific patterns. It is also the gateway to other practices such as yoga and meditation (see below). If you do nothing but close your eyes and practice controlled and conscious breathing for fifteen minutes, you will experience immediate benefits.

Meditation. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, a U.S. government agency, states: “Meditation is a mind and body practice that has a long history of use for increasing calmness and physical relaxation, improving psychological balance, coping with illness, and enhancing overall health and well-being.” NIH, Meditation: In Depth (April 2016), https://nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm. It has been practiced since antiquity in a number of religious traditions. It is a way to use your breath (see breathwork above) to quiet your thoughts and move into a deep state of relaxation. One way to start practicing meditation is to download one of the many meditation apps from your smart phone and just follow along.

6. Monitor Alcohol and/or Medications

In stressful times such as these, people often become more reliant on drugs and/or alcohol. There’s a case to be made for the opposite, i.e., reassessing one’s relationship with drugs or alcohol in light of the crisis. Start by seeking help from experts who can guide you through the process of recovery if you have a dependency issue. If you just want to cut back, putting your energy into some of the things mentioned above might help you to do that.

7. Use Music as a Mood Booster

Listen to music. It’s great therapy. With applications like Spotify, you can find virtually any artist, song, or album and play it with a click or two. Explore different genres of music than what you may have listened to in the past. There’s a world of new artists playing wonderful new tunes. It’s gratifying to discover new and beautiful songs from obscure artists as well as find old hits you haven’t heard in years. If you’re in a confined space with others, listen through ear buds or headphones. Some have noise cancellation features that truly shut the world out.

8. Escape by Reading

As with music, read more. I don’t mean articles about the law, which you probably read too much of already. Read to relax. Escape with some good fiction. Audio books are popular.

9. Develop a Hobby

Some lawyers I know are so consumed by their practices, they haven’t taken the time to develop any hobbies. Diversions are important. Engage yourself in something new. There are so many options.

In a quickly changing world in which there is a great deal that is not within your control, you can at least change those things that are within your control. Use this time as an opportunity to make positive and long-lasting changes to your life.

Gerald (Jerry) D. Bloch practices law as a solo practitioner and has a transactional real estate and general business practice. He has been a member of the OCBA since the mid-90s, is on the OCBA Lawyer Well-Being Committee, and is also a certified yoga teacher with regular classes for seniors in Laguna Woods Village. He can be reached at jerry@gdbloch.com.