{"id":250117,"date":"2020-03-26T22:47:18","date_gmt":"2020-03-27T02:47:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=250117"},"modified":"2020-03-26T22:51:30","modified_gmt":"2020-03-27T02:51:30","slug":"finding-happiness-in-the-time-of-coronavirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2020\/03\/26\/finding-happiness-in-the-time-of-coronavirus\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding happiness in the time of coronavirus"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We can choose to find positive meaning in negative events. Coronavirus is a major setback in all our lives. If we experience a setback, can we find a quick way to turn it into tequila with lime? (Supplied)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Coronavirus or Covid-19 has taught us this valuable lesson: everything around us is fleeting. Our jobs, our gyms, shopping malls, movies, Tinder, partying, and even our favourite restaurants have all gone for a toss as we are learning to live our lives without them. Overnight, Coronavirus has turned all of us into introverts. Just like that.<\/p>\n

As we continuously learn to adapt to a life during pandemic \u2013 we have also added new words and terms in our vocabularies. Words such as \u201ccomorbidity\u201d, \u201cself-isolation\u201d, \u201cpractice social-distancing\u201d, \u201cflatten the curve\u201d, \u201cplank the curve\u201d and yes, the newly minted word \u201ccovidiot\u201d (I\u2019m tempted to add \u201ccovidiocy\u201d) are being frequently used on a daily basis. Is it all really doom and gloom? Yes, it is serious. Yes, it is life threatening. Yes, it has impacted our economies and livelihoods. Yes, it has separated us from our friends and even our families. We cannot control everything that happens in our lives; however, we can control our thoughts and our behaviours. We can choose to find positive meaning in negative events. Coronavirus is a major setback in all our lives. If we experience a setback, can we find a quick way to turn it into tequila with lime?<\/p>\n

Here are a few tips, which I personally found helpful in finding happiness in the time of Coronavirus:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. SMILE <\/strong>Most of us think that happiness comes from the inside. Not really. Happiness can emanate from the outside. If you happen to walk two meters apart from a stranger \u2013 smile! If you see your neighbour across the front lawn, smile! When you are flossing your teeth in front of a mirror, smile! Smiling does not cost us a penny \u2013 it\u2019s free! Smiling actually activates happiness-inducing chemicals so it is good for our health and mental wellness. If you are to spread anything \u2013 spread good and positive vibes only! Now is the time to turn that frown upside down!<\/li>\n
  2. EMPATHIZE <\/strong>Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another. It is listening with the ears of another. It is feeling with the heart of another. In other words, empathy is about finding echoes of another person in us. When we say, \u201cI hear you\u201d to another person \u2013 it gives us a sense of connection. Empathy promotes abilities that help us handle stress.<\/li>\n
  3. KINDNESS <\/strong>in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking promotes profoundness. Saying kind words to others makes you feel happy and free of negativity. Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fibre of a free person. We could all use a little bit of kindness during this pandemic time that we all live in.<\/li>\n
  4. BE CREATIVE <\/strong>When Coronavirus upturned my life, I sought comfort in words. I started writing my thoughts. I found happiness in writing. You know what they say \u2013 \u201cthe creative adult is the child who survived.\u201d Turning to creativity is intelligence having fun! When you have fun, you are happy!<\/li>\n
  5. ART OF GRATITUDE <\/strong>is a powerful catalyst for happiness. Being grateful means, we don\u2019t have to look for things that we don\u2019t have because gratitude turns what we have into enough. Being thankful is the healthiest of all human emotions! Make a list of things you are grateful for \u2013 you will find yourself smiling, or even laughing!<\/li>\n
  6. GET RID OF ENVY <\/strong>Instead of being envious of your next-door neighbour\u2019s latest expensive car and high paying job \u2013 choose to look upon them as a source of inspiration. A happy person channels that negative, pointless jealousy into a catalyst for his or her own achievements.<\/li>\n
  7. GET THAT BODY MOVING! <\/strong>When we get our bodies moving and our blood flowing, we release endorphins, which combats stress. Simply put: exercise naturally makes us feel good. Besides, I like the idea of looking good at my age just like J-lo!<\/li>\n
  8. CONCENTRATE ON THE SILVER LINING <\/strong>I hate to burst anyone\u2019s bubble, but this is a fact: we all don\u2019t get out of this alive anyway \u2013 we all die at some point. But, instead of seeing the dark spots in every cloud, we should really focus on the bright side of our lives. There\u2019s always a silver lining for every cloud that hovers above our heads. Just as Coronavirus has taught us that everything is temporary \u2013 we should take joy in the fact that Coronavirus is also fleeting. It must end at some point.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Well folks, this is the first time in history when we can save lives by lying in front of the TV doing nothing \u2013 let\u2019s not screw this up please \u2013 let us do a fantastic job of staying at home! Be happy! Happiness depends upon us. Don\u2019t let the negativity of Coronavirus get you down. You are not alone. We\u2019re all in this together. \u00a0WE WILL GET THROUGH THIS TOGETHER.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Coronavirus or Covid-19 has taught us this valuable lesson: everything around us is fleeting. Our jobs, our gyms, shopping malls, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":250121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-250117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lifestyle","mauthors-matte-laurel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250117"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":250124,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250117\/revisions\/250124"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/250121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}