During a time of unprecedented anxiety and uncertainty, it may not seem like a priority to let our playful side come out. With many of our favorite activities out of reach during the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are overworking, under-recreating, and withdrawing. These are normal responses to fear and change. However, we now know that we will be enduring this crisis for weeks and months to come. We will need resilience to survive this thing, and compassion to care for one another in the long haul.
There are so many reason to add in purposeful play and fun right now. We are no longer in a sprint, we are in a marathon, and it will serve us to do all we can to develop resilience, kindness, and patience. Adding in more play has been shown to help you:
Relieve stress
Produce "feel good" chemicals in your brain
Reduce anxiety, depression, and panic
Deepen relationships and strengthen your bonds with loved ones
Get perspective
Give your systems a break from chronic stress
Improve problem solving ability and focus
Develop resilience in the face of adversity
It’s harder to find moments of joy and pleasure right now. Making time for fun will probably require intentional planning. Need some ideas? We gathered up a few quarantine friendly suggestions:
Play a board game or card game
Play a game virtually with friends (Try Houseparty or Drawful)
Wrestle (with a consenting wrestling partner of course!)
Watch your favorite funny movie or rewatch your favorite TV series
Play dress ups (with or without kids!) and Facetime a friend who needs a boost
Color, paint, draw, doodle
Sing and dance
Try something new in the bedroom
Try something new in the kitchen and take the time to savor your meal
Bake a cake
Ride a bike
Lay in the grass and daydream