You’ve made it! You’ve arrived in London. You’ve been waiting for this time for so long but now you have to self-isolate. You will either have to isolate yourself in a hotel room, your student accommodation or your room. Spending days in a small space can be very hard on your mental health. I have self-isolated 3 times and I know how you feel. In this blog I’ll give you some tips to make your self-isolation period less difficult.

Get Prepared

Before starting my self-isolation, one of the first choices I did was to prepare myself mentally and also buy whatever I needed. What helped me a lot was buying snacks that I like, magazines and books to keep myself busy and make a list of all the Netflix episodes I wanted to watch. I also advise you to plan your lessons. During my isolation in London, I bought a Nintendo Switch. Playing animal crossing was very relaxing and helped keep the time flowing.

Schedule FaceTime Calls

Isolating yourself for a long period of time can make you feel lonely. To remedy this, organise video calls with friends or family. You will be able to chat with your loved ones and have the impression that they are with you. 

Stay Active and Eat Healthy

It is really important that you do not lie in your bed all day. This can cause migraines or neck pain. During my isolation I was not allowed to go to the gym in my building so I set up a yoga mat in my room and started taking sports classes online. I highly recommend Pamela Reif's YouTube channel and Instagram account. I was able to depend on my energy and thus feel fatigue in order to go to bed at a reasonable time in the evening. Along the same lines, I recommend eating healthy and cooking rather than relying on food delivery services like Uber Eat. Food has a great effect on your morale, so eating healthy and fresh foods like fruits and vegetables will help keep your spirits up!

Take It Slow

Finally, take it slow! Honestly, in isolation there is no point in setting off an alarm at 6:30 in the morning! Silly to say, but sleeping is a great way to keep the time flowing. So turn off your alarm and let your morning stretch by staying in bed until 9: 30/10: 00. You will see your days go by faster. Also take this opportunity to practise self-care, make yourself a routine, take care of your skin and hair, meditate, watch movies or shows that you like. 

Small point to add, the purpose of self-isolating is not to contaminate others. So it is important to monitor your symptoms. If ever you are not feeling well both physically and mentally call the NHS for the appropriate help.