Stay Well During the Coronavirus Pandemic

With novel coronavirus spreading throughout the country, it’s more important than ever to practice wellness for you and your family. “Wellness right now isn’t just about making sure you don’t contract the coronavirus,” says Anuradha Shanmugham, MD, MPH of Marshall Internal Medicine and Chief Wellness Officer for Marshall. “It’s about exercising whole body health and self-care as well.”

Here are some tips from Dr. Shanmugham on how to stay well during this difficult time.

• Wash your hands. Much more than you think you need to and for 20 seconds with hot water. Make sure you wash the backs of your hands and thumbs, these are areas that are easily missed.
• Wipe down frequently used surfaces. Using a wipe or spray, such as bleach, that kills germs, make sure you disinfect door handles, light switches, phones and tablets and remote controls. Anywhere you and your family touch on a regular basis.
• Move your body. If you’ve been instructed to work from home or are self-isolating with your family, don’t forget to move. Crank up some tunes and have a dance party in the living room. Bring groceries in from the car one bag at a time. Take a short walk. Even small efforts add up and help keep your body and mind healthy.
• Eat well balanced meals and make sure you include nutritious foods in your diet. Try to include natural sources of Vitamin C in your daily diet like oranges, kiwi etc. If the supermarket does not have the foods you are looking for, check out speciality shops which are still open and stocked to provide you and your family good, healthy food. Butcher shops are a great place to find lean proteins like chicken and pork and you can visit your local fish market to get a variety of seafood.

And lastly, please take care of your mental and emotional health which is extremely important during this critical time. Our stress levels are bound to rise when thinking and hearing about all the terrible things happening around the world because of this pandemic. Try to practice deep breathing exercises for a few minutes daily. It is important to stay positive as much as we can and focus on the present so that we are not consumed by the fear of what is going to happen in the future.