Hi again, it’s me.  It’s been a while. But I’m working from home, amid some pretty crazy events that we never could have imagined even just a couple of weeks ago.

Today was day 14 for me working from home, excluding two weekends spent entirely at home – not because of COVID-19, but just due to the nature of my work.  I had three weeks of flexibility where I planned to work from home.  I should be going back to the office on Monday. Welp, that’s not happening. So here I am, about three weeks in, going stir-crazy as hell, and I’m required to work from home indefinitely.  I anticipate a minimum of six more weeks.  Only time will tell.

So, last night I was reassessing my life.  All I’ve done in my spare time these three weeks is watch TV.  I’m eating pretty badly and haven’t even had real meals, just snacks. But not a serving of snacks, a whole box or bag of snacks. I’ve put on about 5 pounds.  I’m kind of sticking to my fitness regime, but not strictly.  If I don’t feel like working out, I don’t and skip days, saying I’ll be better next week.  I look around my house and it’s not disgusting, but it’s not exactly clean.  I still haven’t put away the groceries that I bought 6 days ago. I’m not on a good schedule for work and have barely settled in.  I have this incredible desk and office space (currently cluttered with junk) and am just working at the counter in my kitchen.  I barely put clothes on each morning and have just been throwing on a robe when I wake up and chilling in that all day. My hygiene is a little bit questionable, but what does it matter if no one sees me?

SO TODAY THAT IS CHANGING

I decided to do a complete overhaul of my life while working from home. I set rules for myself and did some forward-thinking and planning for the next month and a half (or more!).

Lauren’s guide to staying sane when working from home

1. Practice good hygiene – shower and bathe regularly, wash your face, wash your hands (LOL).
2. Change into clothes when you wake up – you can go right into sweat pants or your favorite leisurewear, but put on clean clothes that you did not sleep in! And if it makes you feel better, put on makeup and do your hair. Take care of yourself to make sure that you feel like a human and not a zombie walking around the house.
3. Make fitness and being active a priority – I’m committing to working out a minimum of 30 minutes, six days a week. I also set a standing walking date with a friend that lives nearby for us to both get out of the house and move around a little bit, but still practicing social distancing.
4. Plan and prep meals to avoid overeating and take a stand against boredom cravings – portion out the not so healthy foods into one or two servings before eating to avoid eating the whole box of Thin Mints in one sitting. Plan meals with your perishable foods sooner rather than later and save the frozen meals and ramen in case things get worse.

5. Support local businesses if you can – plan to pick up a meal curb-side or take out or order delivery while restaurants are still allowed to do this, whether once a week or once a day. There are so many people out of work and business is completely slowing down, so if you are able, give back.
6. Create a chore chart to be more productive – I’m having to play mom and child right now to hold myself accountable. I don’t feel like doing chores, but I need to be productive and take care of things around the house while I can. And also, I need to not live in filth and get over the fact that I don’t want to wash a dish. I found some cute printable calendar templates and started mapping out the “need to do” things. I’ll continue to build in other productive tasks as things come up.

7. Plan a schedule and stick to it as best you can, but also schedule breaks! – We often sit down at our desks and don’t move for 8-10 or more hours. Set some structure for yourself, but allow for breaks. Go for a walk in the middle of the day when the sun is out. Take 15 minutes to play with your cat or dog (who is absolutely loving having you home btw).
8. Set up an environment that is conducive to productive work – whether you have a desk, a kitchen table or a kitchen counter, do whatever you can to set up space for you to thrive. Try to avoid working in bed entirely if you can avoid it. Limit the amount of work on the couch, if possible.

9. Take advantage of your free time and set limits for yourself – for me, this means limiting the amount of TV that I watch to try to make better use of my time. I am setting a limit of 2 hours of TV during the week and 5 on weekends. I will fill the rest of my free time by doing some more stimulating activities like reading, doing a puzzle, being more active, doing crafts, baking, and blogging. A lot of these are hobbies that I absolutely LOVE but just don’t have the time for anymore. Now I have the time, so I need to make the time.
10. Plan time to socialize with friends, remotely if possible – text your friends, plan FaceTime dates or Netflix parties, call your loved ones and check-in.

What are your tips for making a self-quarantine/work from home environment as painless as possible?