Virtual Work - where work meets home...

  I don't have children of my own yet, but nevertheless, I can relate to the working from home with children dilemmas. Sometimes, I'd see peers venting on social media about the struggle, the frustration of being the super parent, doing it all. I've experienced the lighter moments at a meeting when a child's voice is randomly heard, as well as the awkward silence when a parent is heard disciplining their child, while forgetting to mute their mic. The video below may look familiar if your weekday is filled with simultaneously wearing the employee and parent hats. I recently attended a working-from-home with children seminar held by my employers in collaboration with a well-known Psychologist and Educator. Some advice that stood out to me, that you can apply if faced in a situation similar to above, is to firstly ensure your children have a dedicated device for their learning, rather than shared with you or their siblings. Each child should also have a dedicated, personal...

 Regardless of gender, it's good practice to pamper yourself ever so often, especially after a stressful work day. Like me, some of you may be a bit cautious of your whereabouts, as you should be during this time. In that case, visiting the spa may be out of the question for you, but that doesn't mean you should be deprived of these relaxing moments. It can be as simple as having a longer bath than usual, with your favourite/ aromatherapy scented candles or taking a nap with a cooling mask. If your job entails sitting behind the computer, no need to wait until the end of the work day to destress. You can start with a foot soak with ingredients you may already have around your home. However, to enjoy the full benefits, I suggest waiting until the work day is over. Check out this link  for recommended ingredients to be used depending on your needs - whether you desire better circulation, exfoliation, moisture, detox and more. Also, be sure to check here  for other...

  A variety of courses are available for you to enrol in online for your professional and self development. This can help you in improving your current skills; exploring another career; gaining accreditation and even boosting self-confidence from the comfort of your home. There's no better time than the present.  The best part is, these courses can be done at your convenience and pace - whether you choose to learn on your lunch break, before or after working hours. You're in control of the schedule. Think of the long-term benefits of the course. Maybe t he material learnt can make you qualify for a promotion, make you more marketable or possibly be used to start or develop your own business. Depending on the class layout, you'll also be able to network with your classmates. Your interest may lie in learning about technology, a new language, math, science, health, marketing, or business to name a few. The possibilities are endless. It's never too late, and you're not...

Some other activities that may help you break the monotony at home can include: 1. Baking/ Cooking      For those who love being in the kitchen, this may be an easy task. Even if you're not top-chef material, you can still be open to it. It's always fun to try tasting something new, and you can feel accomplished when you've made it yourself. The popular Naparima Girls' High School Cookbook can be handy for our local cuisine, plus the ingredients mentioned are easy to find at the supermarket. There's also the  Trini Cooking with Natasha  YouTube channel if videos are easier for you to follow, as well as the  Natasha's Cooking  videos if you'd like to try international cuisine. 2.  Gardening     While it's fine to indulge in dessert ever so often, let's not neglect our healthy eating, especially as we may be a bit less active at home. If your yard space allows, consider creating your home-garden. This way you can be certain of the chemical...

Working from home doesn't mean we must literally sit behind the computer all day. Although often times, this can be the case, when we get so consumed with our tasks. Instead, we should try to engage in other activities during our lunch or coffee break, or even after our work day to maintain our sanity. 1. Painting/ Colouring     While it may sound like a child's activity, yes, adults can paint and colour too. It's a good way to pass time and can help in relieving stress. I even have a friend who took the opportunity of doing some early Christmas painting around the home. If you're interested, here's a site I found that offers free printable pages for colouring/painting. It also offers drawing and painting lessons too, to help guide those creative juices.  https://www.art-is-fun.com/free-adult-coloring-pages 2. D ance classes     Maybe art isn't your thing, well why not try a dance class? Here's one of the dance schools I recommend right here in T&T who r...

In this post, I'll share some other videos of easy-to-do stretches you can engage in.  They can each be accomplished in under 5 mins, so don't worry, you don't need to dedicate a lot of time to get them done. In this video, Physiotherapist Wesley Henrisson demonstrates lumbar rotation, lumbar extension and hip/piriformis stretch. Physical Therapist Bryan Bartz shares 3 stretches to loosen Work-From-Home body stiffness. Lastly, this video by Physical Therapists Brendan and Jessica Ryder demonstrate how to keep your body moving with spine stretches: Head turn and rotation, Seated pelvic tilt, Sit to Stand, Forward lunge and stretch.

Hopefully my  previous post  encouraged you to want to get those joints moving. Here are some stretches we can do in under 5 minutes, while we take our breaks during the work day. These are particularly beneficial for those who spend hours behind a computer screen. Physiotherapist Andy Khuu demonstrates the upper back twist, upper back arch and neck and shoulder stretch in the video below.

 In my  last post I shared 3 tips for coping with working from home (WFH) during the pandemic. I'll wrap up this topic by leaving you with 2 additional tips. 1. Eating healthy     Although fast-food is the quickest solution to satisfy hunger, we should take advantage of the opportunity to prepare a healthy home-cooked meal. We should maintain our lunch break to ensure we eat on time, rather than at the end of the work day. Some benefits of eating healthy include a better sleep, more energy, improved concentration.  More info on healthy eating from FoodInCare 2. Exercise     This puppy may be relatable to most, especially if you were disciplined with your exercise regime pre-covid. By engaging in exercise, we increase benefits to our body and brain such as making us feel happier, maintaining strong muscles and bones, as well as boosting memory and improving relaxation and sleep quality. In subsequent posts, I'll share some exercise videos to get you st...