Most of us are stuck at home. When we do go out, it can feel a bit stressful.

Now that we are staying at home things may be starting to slow down.

Some people are looking to find the benefits of being stuck in the house all day and are trying to enjoy the “break” from the day to day life.

I’m one of those people who has that voice in the back of their head that always assures them things will work out. I’m always striving to see how I can make things work out well and am always looking for ways to improve my life.

Here are some tips for people to get through being stuck inside and unemployed without going crazy.

1. There is so much extra time- now you don’t have to commute and don’t spend 8 or more hours at work. It may seem like you’re doing more, but you should be able to look around and find extra time to spend doing something for you. It could be sneaking away to take a bath while your partner is home with the kids or after the kids go to bed. You could try to wake up a few minutes early to put on your coffee or tea and get a small workout or meditation in before the kids wake.

2. Take this time to quit eating out and learn to cook, if you can’t.

If you’re able to, turn on food network and start playing with the recipes.

Not only do you save money by not eating out, it’s healthier. Its more time consuming but kids can join in and it can turn into both an educational and fun family activity

3.If you’re working from home or laid off, try taking up a new hobby. If there is something you have been wanting to learn, do it.

There are YouTube tutorials for everything, if you want to learn to paint or learn to decorate cakes, now is a good time.

4. Just take time to sit down every night and be lazy. All those posts telling people to use this time for productivity is not for everyone.

The most important thing to do right now is take care of your mental health, especially those of us with mental illness of any kind. Starting a business or writing a book are great ideas- for those of us with interest, but self care is vital right now more than any form of being productive. Self care could be getting in bed earlier, sleeping in later or speaking off to take a bath.

My kids and I have spent several hours over the last couple days working on our garden. Gardening is a great way to relieve stress. I also turn to writing and have to have a creative outlet.

Right now may seem hopeless but if you look deep into your day, hopefully you can find at least a 5 minute window to do one small thing to care for yourself.