UNICEF staff councillors recommend that their staff create a wellbeing plan during this unprecedented time, and have put together a list of top tips to help anyone do just that.
1. Stick to routines or start new ones
Get up and go to sleep at a regular time. Get dressed. Exercise. Take a shower. Do the dishes. Involve the children so that you have a family plan.
2. Stay connected
Have video chats with your family and friends. Open up about how you’re feeling and ask others how they’re feeling. Check in with colleagues regularly, through secure video facilities especially those who are alone.
3. Engage in hobbies and things you enjoy
Do karaoke. Read. Cook. Do puzzles. Sew or knit.
4. Set up a ‘worry window’
Write down all your worries throughout the day and give yourself permission to think about those worries during a specific time of day.
5. Engage in wellbeing practices
Use meditation and mindfulness apps (see our list below). Exercise. Keep a gratitude journal in which you write three things you are grateful for every day. Congratulate yourself and others on having a ‘great day’. Remember lots of things have not been cancelled like music, family, reading, singing, laughing and hope. Make sure you enjoy them.
Reference – Unicef Day four: Executive Director Henrietta H. Fore’s video diary amid the coronavirus outbreak | UNICEF
Connecting Social Work during Social Isolation
Padlet message board moderated and set up by Denise Turner
Supporting remote and online supervision during COVID-19 - Author Alison Domakin via Research in Practice website.
General
Category – Wellbeing/Community
Format – Website
About - Elefriends is a supportive online community from the mental health charity Mind. We all know what it’s like to struggle sometimes, but now there’s a safe place to listen, share and be heard. (Free to use, for over 17s only)
Category – Wellbeing
Format – Website
About – Silver cloud provides a wide range of supportive and interactive programmes, tools and tactics for mental and behavioural health issues. (Free to use)
Category – Fitness
Format – App
About - Free 30day trial – includes fitness, nutrition and wellbeing.
Category – Fitness
Format – App
About - Free online calorie counter and diet plan.
Category – Fitness
Format – App
About – Free trial. Workout at home with unlimited access to over 800 workouts.
Gov.uk COVID-19: guidance for the public on mental health and wellbeing
Category – Wellness
Format –Website
About – Advice and information on how to look after your mental health and wellbeing during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
National Wellbeing Hub for People working in health and social care (Scotland)
Category - Wellness
Format - Website
About - The Hub is a partnership between national, local and professional bodies in Scotland with a shared passion for looking after the emotional and psychological wellbeing of our country’s health and social services workers.
Category - resilience
Format - blog
About - A blog written by Sarah Rose, current PhD student researching the emotional resilience of social workers, sharing how social workers can remain resilient during the pandemic.
Category – Wellbeing
Format – Website
About – A curated list of resources from Calm.com, including meditations, music and mindfulness.
Category – Communication/Wellbeing
Format – Website
About – A way for all involved in Social Work to share tips; photos; videos; jokes etc etc etc to connect during self-isolation.
Category – Wellbeing
Format – Youtube Channel
About – UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta H. Fore, has been filming video diaries during her time working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic. Henrietta offers helpful advice during her videos, particularly on day four where she shares her list of top tips for working from home, which we have referenced above.
Category -Communication
Format – App
About – House Party allows you to spend time with those you care about via video chat. This free app allows chats with up to 8 people from your contacts list. Once you are in a chat, anyone can add additional people to the chat and even initiate games such as trivia.
Category -Communication
Format – App/Website
About – Zoom is another great video chat app/website you can use to contact friends and family. Zoom have initiated demos and webinars for information on how to best use the app to navigate the coronavirus pandemic.
Category -Entertainment
Format – App
Audible, the audio-book app, is offering a 30 day free trials with a choice of any book from their library. They are also providing an entirely free service called Audible Stories throughout school closures. This service provides a collection of free stories for children and teens.
Category -Entertainment/Productivity
Format – Website
About – Skill Share provides free online classes for new skills such as SEO, Productivity Habits, Podcasting and Illustration. The website has thousands of classes which include anything from practical work skills or entertainment/hobby-based lessons.
Category - Productivity/Wellbeing/Communication
Format – Website/App
About – Used by teachers, students, professionals, and individuals of all ages, all around the world, the Padlet app is the easiest way to create and collaborate wherever you are.
Padlet is like paper for your screen. Start with an empty page and then put whatever you like on it. Upload a video, record an interview, snap a selfie, write your own text posts or upload some documents, and watch your padlet come to life. Once others add to it, the page will update in real time.
See the Padlet for "Connecting Social Work during Social Isolation" by social worker, Denise Turner
Category – Exercise
Format – YouTube Channel
About – Personal trainer Joe Wicks has many home workouts videos available for free on his YouTube Channel. These classes vary between 10, 20 and 30 minutes and offer a variety of different exercises.
Category – Exercise/Wellbeing
Format – YouTube Channel
About – Yoga with Adriene is a YouTube Channel offering hundreds of yoga videos for free. There is something for everyone here including yoga focusing on mental health and wellbeing as well as physical health.
The Body Coach TV - P.E with Joe Live workouts for kids
Category – Exercise
Format – YouTube Channel
About – Personal Trainer Joe Wicks will be hosting P.E lessons for kids live on his YouTube Channel every weekday at 9.30am during the school closures.
Category – Healthy Eating
Format – Website
About – The Supercook website allows you to input the ingredients you have in stock and produces recipes that include those ingredients.
Category – Healthy Eating
Format – Website
About – Change4Life has a database of healthy recipes suitable for family cooking.
Category – Productivity
Format – App
About – With the free version of the Coach.me app, you can build habits and set goals for work, health and wellbeing. This app could provide a way of setting a new routine when working at home, isolating or caring for children during school closures.
Category – Wellbeing
Format – App
About – The free version of the headspace app offers exercise videos and meditation guides.
Category – Wellbeing
Format – App
About – The Calm app offers a great platform for beginners who would like to give mediation a go.
Mind.com Advice for staying at home
Category – wellbeing
Format – Website
About – Mind offer some advice on how isolating can affect your mental health and wellbeing and how you can combat this.
Category – Wellbeing
Format – App/Website
About – Ten Percent Happier offers meditations, podcasts, blog posts, and talks designed to help build resilience and find some calm amidst the chaos.
Guardian Advice for working from home
Category – Productivity
Format – Website
About – The Guardian offers some tips for those that are able to work from home.
Working with display screen equipment (DSE) A brief guide. This leaflet will help you to comply with the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 and explains what you, as an employer, may need to do to protect your employees from any risks associated with Display Screen Equipment (DSE) (ie computers and laptops).
These are just a selection of online resources, platforms and facilities which aim to give you an idea of how to connect with family and friends and to support wellbeing. There are many more platforms and facilities to choose from. Please do remember to ensure you use secure video and phone facilities for confidential professional discussions.
Other ideas to take care of yourself
- Take a bubble bath
- Wrap yourself in a warm, soft blanket
- Blow Bubbles
- Watch a funny film
- Sing or listen to music
- Wear soft & comfy clothes and read a magazine
- Sit in the sun
- Play with a pet
- Light a candle
- Take a nap
- Daydream
- Have a virtual catch up with your friends – on What’s App/Zoom/ Houseparty
- Dance in your living room
- Hula Hoop
- Plant some flowers or bulbs
- Rearrange your home
- Stretch
- Ride a bike
- Doodle or colour
- Create and cook a new dish
- Play an instrument
- Make a gift for someone
- Write a song or a poem
- Knit, crochet or sew
- Invent something!
- Learn about something new
- Write a letter
- Paint a picture
Useful resource for Children whilst social distancing / self-isolating
Welsh language resources for children
Category – Children
Format – YouTube Channel
About - Huw Aeron will be uploading daily Welsh language drawing video-comics, doodles, cartoons etc to YouTube.
Bydd Huw Aeron yn lanlwytho fideo pob dydd i YouTube yn rannu tips arluno, creu comics, gemau, animeiddio ag ati i blant.
Apiau Cymraeg/Welsh Apps
- Codi Hwyl – Gemau i ddatblygu’r Gymraeg / Games to develop Welsh Language
- Darllen y Ddraig – Darllen a deall i ddisgyblion hyn / Comprehension for older pupils
- Campau Cosmig – Gwella geirfa Gymraeg / Games to help improve vocabulary
- Sut mae pethau’n gweithio – Gwyddoniaeth CA2 – trydan, grym a sain / KS3 science – electricity, force and sound
- Y Ddaer Gynaliadwy – Gwyddoniaeth CA2 – Y Ddaear / KS2 science – about the earth
- Tric a Chlic & Tric a Chlic 2 – Dysgu llythrennau a darllen cynnar / Learning letters and early reading
- Alun yr Arth – Ar y Fferm – Gemau amrywiol i blant ifanc / Games for younger children
- Betsan a Roco yn y Dref 1 – Straeon a cherddi i blant ifanc / Stories and poems for young children
Resources for children
Science and Nature
- Woodland Trust – 10 nature activities to do with kids if you’re self-isolating at home – for those under 10s
- Wildlife with Steve Backshall on Facebook – every day at 9:30am, Stive will answer all your wildlife, biology, conservation and exploration questions
- Science with Maddie Moate on YouTube – weekdays at 11am – Maddie and Greg chat about science and nature.
Keeping healthy
- PE with Joe Wicks on YouTube – weekdays at 9am
- Dance with Oti Mabuse on Facebook – everyday at 11:30am – but you can view the class at anytime
- www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga - yoga and mindfulness activities for children
Maths for kids
- Maths with Carol Vorderman – free access to her maths website
Creativity
- Music with Myleene Class on YouTube – classes are twice a week but can be viewed at any time
- Storytime with David Walliams – free story at 11am everyday
