HOW HOBBIES HELP US STAY HAPPY IN LOCKDOWN

Did you know that our brains are wired to look for danger? And in lockdown, our anxiety is heightened.

Let me explain some science to you...

Ou prehistoric ancestors who survived were the best at spotting danger, they used the primitive “fight or flight” response of the nervous system to escape the clutches of a sabre tooth tiger - and thankfully they passed those survival genes onto us - it means we are survivors!

With COVID-19 however, our sympathetic nervous systems, responsible for our fight or flight responses, have been in overdrive - for probably the better part of a year (for some of us.) But why is this?

As adults, as we consume news of the Coronavirus, our bodies secrete cortisol that drives our “fight or flight” response and causes us to hyper-focus - which makes it harder to look away from a potential threat.

This hyper-focus is crucial in times of crisis - basically, if a sabre-tooth tiger is standing in front of you, you had better focus and run as if nothing else in the world matters.

BUT if real danger is not visibly present (i.e. a virus that we can't see) we may become obsessed with the wrong things: which means if fear doesn’t have the proper target it can become anxiety and paranoia.

And this can also be passed onto our children - who also consume the news, speak to their friends, see things on social media - and even just pick up on the things that mum and dad say.

Essentially - right now we are all seeing danger everywhere, without actually seeing it, and the fight or flight response isn’t helpful, and our poor brains are getting confused.

Unlike our ancestors, who once they escaped the tiger found that the drama was over, and went and had a little rest in their cave - returning their cortisol levels back to normal, we have a slightly different story...

Once we turn off the news we see more bad news on our phones, via WhatsApp on social media then we do the school run, rush to work, the shops, rush to make dinner get harassed by emails text calls then maybe more news and before bed we are back on our phones and basically, we have no cave in which to hide and set our levels back to normal. And once again, our kids pick up on all this too...

So, how do we find the space to set those cortisol levels back?

Build our own caves, connect to our hobbies and continue life as much as we can - even in lockdown - and even if it's on Zoom - and here's why!

Ways to recreate the fight or flight response...

• Aerobic activity - like dancing! - it can help you boost those happy hormones and set your cortisol levels back to normal - this is why it's so important that even if classes are on Zoom - we still continue to do what we love!
• Taking a few deep breaths to activate the vagus nerve - this will signal the nervous system to slow down, it will reduce anxiety and lower cortisol levels. And dance helps you move with your body in breath... just saying!
• Social connectivity - this explains why this year has been so HARD! Social connectivity is one of the ways we reduce cortisol levels - in fact isolation INCREASES cortisol levels and aggression. So even if you don't like Zoom please try it! It keeps you connected and it is so important for the kids to keep connected too!
• Having fun and laughing reduces cortisol levels - and we know how much fun our dances classes are don't we?
• Music is the food of love and also has a whole range of mood boosting benefits - and when we listen to music, we dance - which we know is great for the soul!

It's so important for our own mental health to continue to connect with our hobbies during these turbulent times - and I hope that, even on Zoom, we will be able to connect and keep that community spirit going that is so vital for our survival!