After more than a year since the Covid-19 pandemic has brought about unprecedented changes, most people are still stuck in the “new normal” way of living despite the availability of vaccines globally. In the business sector, the majority of employees have been placed in mandatory work from home setup to adhere to several health and safety restrictions.
Although some companies are not new to this setup, some still consider this an unfamiliar situation that requires extra effort and adjustment for people in the workforce. The usual mundane things like commuting into the office, dining in restaurants with your officemates, and meeting people, in general, have been taken away by the pandemic. Now, almost everyone has transitioned to staying at home to do work-related tasks.
3 Simple and Practical Tips To Maintain Your Mental Health At Home
Doing your full-time technology jobs at home may sound convenient at first but eventually, it will take a toll on your physical and mental health in some way. Some common signs that arise and show that working from home is affecting your mental health includes:
Feeling socially or professionally disconnected and isolated from people
Experiencing difficulty in prioritizing and completing your workload
Lacking the motivation to do work or personal responsibilities
Questioning your work performance and feeling like you’re not performing well
Having insomnia or sleeping problems
It’s completely normal and valid to go through these feelings and experiences during these trying times. To help you slowly overcome this work-from-home struggle, here are simple and practical ways to protect your mental health.
1. Setting your boundaries
Because you’re doing work in a place that is commonly your safe space, boundaries often get blurred and crossed. It is important to make sure that your work routine doesn’t overlap with your home life as much as possible. Creating cues and routines to establish boundaries can help. This way, you can still separate work and home life so it does not affect different aspects from both sides.
2. Taking breaks from time to time
If you’ve been stuck in the work-from-home setup for a few months, one effective way to be in a good mental health state is to take breaks. You can do it daily by taking a walk, meditating, or playing with your pet. Block some time off from your calendar and schedule a vacation if possible. Taking breaks has been a proven way of increasing productivity and it helps you relax when work gets too overwhelming.
3. Stay grounded and connected
With the new setup, it’s a challenge to find ways to keep us entertained while being stuck in the same place. Change your usual routine from time to time, such as limiting your time on social media and using that time instead to read a good book or talk to your support networks such as work colleagues, friends, and family.
Always Prioritize Your Mental Health
The key to ensuring that you don’t feel the burnout of working from home is finding a healthy balance that suits you. Addressing any issues and taking action is the next step. If you leave things ignored, the stress may pile up and affect not only your work but your mental health as well.
SearchElect has a wide list of tech jobs in Singapore with mentally safe workplaces. Make sure to ask your potential employer how they tackle working from home issues to guarantee that you are choosing the workplace that gives importance to your mental health. Do you have other ways to cope while working from home?
Reach out to us through email and share your top tips for staying mentally healthy during these challenging times.