Last year the team at the Royal Horticultural Halls put on a free well-being festival for event professionals. With the country in lockdown and the industry currently at a halt for live events, the organisers and practitioners have collated some tips and for maintaining eventprofs’ physical and mental wellness in this challenging time.
- Vitamin D – also known as the sunshine vitamin and key to our immune systems and overall happiness. It is created through our skin by being in the sun. Half an hour without sunscreen is needed for pale skin and more time for darker skins. Public Health England is advising those who cannot get into the sun to take a supplement from October to March, D3 is the most bio-available and adults should take at least 10 micrograms per day.
- Eat the rainbow – vitamin C and zinc are also essential for our immune systems, which is our body’s natural defence against any disease. By eating a wide range of foods, not only is it pleasurable to look at but increases the vitamins and antioxidants into the body. The more colour the better! Magnesium is nature’s tranquiliser and helps with anxiety and sleep. You can find all of these in green leafy vegetables or a supplement from a good health shop to keep your immune system topped up.
- Get into nature – if you’re not isolating then getting into nature on your daily walk is a tonic for the soul. With vastly reduced air pollution notice how the colours around you have become more vivid and how you can see much further than before. Breathe in the cleaner air and notice how beautiful mother nature really is. Learn about the plants on your travels with the app ‘Picture This.’ It’s free for a week and tells you exactly the species from the picture you take.
- Get planting – with bedding plants at the ready, there’s nothing cheerier and more satisfying than making your patch look pretty or sowing herbs in planters. The Royal Horticultural Society launched ‘Grow at Home’ recently which provides in depth advice for its members. The Society has seen a major uplift in visitors to its site and one can order incredible bedding plants and seeds from specialist suppliers on the nursery page or from the Society itself here. If you live close to an RHS garden such as Wisley, they will even deliver to your door.
- Breathe – if you’re feeling overwhelmed and unsure, or panicky, take a moment, breathe in through your nose to the count of seven, then breathe out through your mouth to the count of 11. Do this until you feel calm, 3-4 times.
- Live in the moment – not the past or the future. Ask yourself is everything ok right now in this moment to quickly rebalance. Our minds can get stuck in a loop replaying the same unhelpful thoughts over and over again. When we look more closely at it, we see that we’re actually ok and the future, when we get there, is just another now moment. If you would like help rebalancing and getting rid of fear, Amanda Weller is offering free online healing sessions on Tuesdays at 8pm, you can join her here. You can experience previous sessions on catch up to get an understanding, but for full effect join live. Her work is incredible.
- Journal – writing things down and getting them out of your head is like decluttering your mind. How you feel on one day may be completely different to how you feel the next day and what you want to achieve. Don’t beat yourself up about not getting as much done as you’d like, as all that achieves is feeling beaten up. Take each day one at a time. Do what you feel you can and keep moving, the sense of achievement you’ll feel is worth it and you can build on that.
- Reach out – it is challenging not being able to see friends and family. Thankfully we have technology to bridge the gap. Whether it’s calling an old friend to check in on them or having a House Party Quiz or Zoom call with friends, communicating has never been more important. We are social beings and need to stay that way. Talking is great therapy and makes us feel connected even when we can’t be physically.
- Exercise – getting oxygen around the body is important. If you don’t have the stamina to do Joe Wicks there are other simple things you can do at home or outside. Even a short HIIT session of 1 minute each of star jumps, squats, running on the spot, star jumps and finishing on squats will keep your fitness levels up and raise your heart rate. Or try Brett Larkin’s yoga sessions on You Tube, she has short videos and different styles for beginners up.
- Sleep well – a decent night’s sleep is essential for good mental health. Try and get to bed between 10 and 11pm when the body starts detoxing and try not to eat or drink alcohol 2 hours before bed.
- Need an industry Buddy to talk to? The Buddies Matter scheme created by Stress Matters will match you up with a peer in the industry who you can talk to on a regular basis. All you need to do is fill out the form and you’ll be matched with a like-minded person who’s happy to listen.
- Need to talk to someone about your mental health? The Events and Hospitality industry support line created by Stress Matters is here to help. A qualified Mental Health First Aider is on hand from 8am – 8pm Monday to Friday. Call 07841 362 111 and feel free to share this number with your peers, you never know when they might need it.