Staying physically and emotionally healthy during quarantine is important and challenging

Posted December 2020

By Narden Ishak

Staff Editor

If you are like me, you might have a lot of time on your hands since quarantine started, so do you find yourself on Tiktok, Instagram, or other social media more often?

If the answer is yes, did you ever think how that much exposure to social media might be affecting you?

For me, I started noticing that impact only recently—and it's not a good one. It made me insecure about my body image. New research led by Professor Viren Swami of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), and published in the Journal Personality and Individual Differences, found that anxiety and stress directly linked to COVID-19 could be causing a number of body image issues amongst women and men. The study involved 506 UK adults with the average age of 34. Amongst women, the study found that feelings of anxiety and stress caused by COVID-19 were associated with a greater desire for thinness. It also found that anxiety was significantly associated with body dissatisfaction. Amongst the male participants, the study found that COVID-19-related anxiety and stress was associated with greater desire for muscularity, with anxiety also associated with body fat dissatisfaction.

A study from NEDA, the National Eating Disorder Association, found that 94% of teenage girls and 64% of teenage boys have experienced body shaming; 64% of girls (all age groups) have experienced online body shaming. Research indicates that body dissatisfaction is the best-known contributor to the development of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Forty percent-60% of elementary school girls (ages 6-12) are concerned about their weight or about becoming too fat. Furthermore, over one-half of teenage girls and nearly one-third of teenage boys use unhealthy weight control behaviors, including skipping meals, fasting, smoking cigarettes, vomiting, and taking laxatives. It can also be a risk factor for depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem.

Here’s my personal experience. I have been feeling insecure about my body and face, which is something that I didn’t really experience before. I have always been very confident, and I was never insecure about my body, except on the occasional mood swings due to hormones and all. I have been feeling insecure since quarantine started, but I started reflecting and digging deep about why I have been feeling that way only recently. Over the course of quarantine I have gained a little bit of weight, but it's small enough that I can blame it on growth. So, how am I insecure even though I didn’t gain a lot of weight? After some reflection, I was finally able to gather a good picture of why that is.

Social media has always been a big part of my life; I really like being on my phone, but since quarantine, my exposure to social media has happened a lot more often, especially Tiktok. Throughout quarantine, I have been getting exposed to a lot of Tiktoks about girls and women taking quarantine as a chance to get in shape, and a lot of the “glow up” Tiktoks. I find them really inspiring to watch and I am always rooting for the people, for their courage, and strength, but I never noticed that they unconsciously impact me.

Before quarantine (I was a freshman at the time) I had my Freshman PE class and my Individual Lifetime Recreation (ILR) class during the first semester. I had my PE class first period and my ILR class second period. At first I was exhausted after two PE classes which are essentially like two hours of exercise, but after a while I noticed I was getting stronger and a lot more in shape, not necessarily losing weight since I didn’t have weight to lose to begin with, but I was gaining muscle and my stamina was noticeably improving. I was gaining muscle in my stomach, my legs, and even a little in my biceps. I was super excited with the change I was seeing. When the semester ended, I decided I wanted to keep this up so I started going to the gym with my mom. Then, quarantine hit and the gym closed. I was still motivated and started exercising at home—until I didn’t. I quickly lost all my motivation and the excitement faded. I feel like a lot of athletes and students who were in clubs and involved in school activities probably had similar experiences. At first, studying and working at home was like a dream come true. I thought I am just going to take a nice break during the summer and when we're back to school (my sophomore year) I will take strength and conditioning class for both semesters to get back in shape. That obviously didn't happen, and I switched my strength and conditioning class for something else. I personally don't like the idea of exercising at home with a camera on.

I live in an apartment with my mom, brother, and grandparents due to certain circumstances. Don't get me wrong: I love my family, but seeing the same people 24/7 was and sometimes is like a nightmare to me. It's hard, especially for someone like me who likes interacting with different people. I also really like having my own personal space, and that was invaded. I was very irritable and anxious, and it was a lot of hard work to get used to "the new normal." On top of all that stress, I started feeling insecure. All the people that I was subjected to seeing were models on Instagram ads or girls "Glowing up" on Tiktok. It made me feel very insecure because it wasn't how I looked or felt, but at the same time I didn't have the mental energy nor the motivation to start working out again. It took a toll on me. I wasn't exercising, so I didn't get hungry, and eating less often caused me to have a very low appetite, not eating properly caused me to be fatigued and get headaches, and the fatigue made it even harder to exercise. As I am typing this, it's 3 p.m and I haven't eaten yet. I was (still) in that awful cycle I can't get out of.

On top of that, there’s school-caused stress. I am very self conscious about being on camera during class. I wake up in the morning, dress up, do my hair, and even apply a little makeup if I am feeling fancy. I look in the mirror and think, "Aw, I look cute today!" I go look in my Chromebook camera and I look like a potato. I hated how I looked on camera, so a lot of times I just keep it turned off even when I was dressed up and looked nice behind it, so I wouldn't feel self conscious. By doing so, I indeed didn't feel self conscious, but I felt pathetic that I didn't have enough courage and confidence to turn my camera on.

Finally, things started turning up for me—just a little. My grandparents moved out on Christmas Eve, I got a job, but now I have COVID. The first two things are awesome. I am ecstatic that I just live with my mom and brother now. I love my grandparents to death, but living with them wasn’t my favorite. Getting a job was such a big step for me that I am super proud of. Today is Dec. 30, which means New Year's Eve is tomorrow. Finally, 2020 is coming to an end. Sadly, I will be celebrating alone and isolated in my room. I am not that upset, though. I will still put on the outfit I had prepared about a month ago to wear tomorrow around my family, and I will just call them on video.

To start the new year I have some tips that might help if you were feeling like me. These are things I personally think are worth giving a try, which is what I will do right after I can stop self isolating.

1. Positive self affirmations are statements that can help you to challenge and overcome self-sabotaging and negative thoughts. When you repeat them often, and believe in them, you can start to make positive changes. You don’t have to personally come up with them; you can install an app called “21 Days Challenge - Life Changing Habits”. As the name suggests, it's an app that has a variety of challenges to choose from. Each lasts 21 days, which is supposedly how many days it takes to form a new habit. One of the challenges is positive affirmations, so I suggest installing the app and giving it a try. If you fail, that’s okay. There’s a restart button so you can always just try again.

2. Go through your Instagram, or other social media, and unfollow anyone who makes you feel bad about yourself in any way. It could be as simple as unfollowing a self-obsessed influencer who you don't need to see 15 different posts from everyday. Instead, follow people you admire and people who advocate for diversity and self love. A favorite of mine is “I Weigh” a community advocating self love. The founder is the actress Jamila Jamil (one of the stars of the Netflix original “The Good Place” with Ted Danson and Kristen Bell). I recommend the show, too.

3. Exercise. Exercise is not necessary to lose weight, but it keeps you physically and mentally healthy. It could be as simple as doing some jumping jacks and then taking a thirty minute walk while listening to music, or it can be as intense as following two Chloe Ting workouts. If you haven’t exercised in a while (like me), the 21 day app has a really good and simple exercise challenge you can start with. After the 21 days, I would pick something from Chloe Ting - Free Workout Programs - #ChloeTingChallenge https://www.chloeting.com/program/

4. Eating healthy. This is something I struggle with because I am not sure what exactly my body needs, but I know some basics. This is probably the most obvious, but ditch the junk food—not completely, though, because then you will crave it even more and might go crazy. Just be conscious of the junk food. Eat a good breakfast; pop tarts don’t count. A nice healthy breakfast for me consists of fruits and veggies, some type of baked goods, dairy (if you aren’t lactose intolerant), and protein like eggs. Eating a good dinner a couple of hours before bed, preferably something that’s not as heavy as a lunch meal. Be very mindful of dieting and try consulting your doctor first, if you aren’t sure how to do it yourself. If you do diet, and sense that you are going overboard and might hurt yourself, talk to your doctor or any trusted adult to help you. I have never been on diet, but I know that restricting yourself from all your favorite foods is not the way to go.

5. Do one good thing very day and one thing that makes you happy. One good thing could be as simple as checking in on a friend you haven’t reached out to in a while with a text, preparing a meal for your family, or complementing a stranger's outfit. One thing that makes you happy could be practicing your hobby, which for me that’s drawing or baking. You can also just listen to your favorite upbeat music or watch your favorite movie or an episode of your favorite show.

6. Don’t wait for an occasion to look pretty. That’s something I do and I am trying to change it. I only dress up for occasions, hence why I prepared my New Year's Eve outfit a month ago. It's because I couldn’t wait to feel pretty, but now I know I can dress pretty any day I want, which is why I will dress up tomorrow even though I am going to be all alone in my room. For me looking pretty is when I dress fancy, but that can be different for you. If you feel the prettiest in a certain outfit, a certain hairstyle, or some make up, then do that.

7. Finally, nurture your brain, because “Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind and spirit,” said B.K.S. Lyengar. Journaling is a really good option to get all your thoughts out of your head, right when you wake up or before you go to bed. You can keep it as simple as writing in a notebook or as fancy as writing in an actual journal, using different colors, fonts, adding doodles, stickers, pictures, or any other personalizations to make it your own. You can start as small as setting your timer to two minutes and write whatever comes to mind. With a little practice and getting used to it, it will start flowing. Read self-help books, even if it's just a few pages every morning. If you are religious, have some God time. Pray and read The Bible, Quran, or the holy book of your choice. Every morning write a short list three to five things you are grateful for that day. Meditate. This can be hard, so just start out with a minute of silence with your eyes closed. Every time your brain starts drifting, simply bring back and try again.

8. Most importantly, remember that beauty comes from within. People can only see what you see in yourself. If you are confident and you love yourself and your body, then that’s what people will see. Also, don’t be too hard on yourself. That’s a really good reminder that I personally forget all the time. Things take time, so be patient with yourself, because you can’t see improvement over night. Failing is okay as long as you don’t give up.

“Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending,” Carl Bard