COVID-19: SIMPLE WAYS TO STAY HEALTHY AT HOME

COVID-19: SIMPLE WAYS TO STAY HEALTHY AT HOME

In line with the measures from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Singaporean population at large has been staying or working from home as much as possible. These measures may cause some of us to feel worry, anxiety and stress on our mental and physical health as our daily lives are disrupted. Mind Science Centre would like to share some free resources for mental and cognitive health in the midst of these difficult times.

Bring Mindfulness into your daily practice with MSC in September.😊 We welcome you to join, and invite your family, friends, or colleagues as well! Click here to register 

An Undefeated Mind: Over 30 seniors are keeping active at home learning how to sing in a choir, keeping socially connected, and showing their appreciation to front-line workers. Music reminiscence is beneficial for our happiness and well-being, and is an activity that everyone can do. We invite you to post a photo on how you have been keeping active at home and tag 3 friends to share this video to encourage them. 

Mindfulness

Continued mindfulness practice has been shown to lower anxiety, increase focus and concentration, reduce inflammation and improve memory. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may experience heightened levels of fear, stress and anxiety due to the health risks, social isolation, uncertainty and disruption to our daily lives. MSC would like to share Mindfulness resources and tips to practicing mindfulness at home, so that we can all take steps to Staying Strong, Staying Well.

(Mandarin)  Facebook “live”: Introduction to Mindfulness with MSC on Mediacorp CAPITAL 958 城市频道 (何谓“正念练习”)

Stay in, do Mindful breathing! collaboration with PA Active Ageing. Watch the video via our Facebook post.

Mindfulness research publications

Eating Well

Maintaining a healthy diet is important as it allows our bodies to function optimally, enable us to be productive, as well as keep our minds sharp amidst the stress, anxiety and uncertainty. MSC has previously published a Food for the Mind publication, which can be accessed HERE.

Sleeping Well

Staying mentally strong also means getting a good night’s sleep. Regular, adequate and restful sleep is important to our mental and physical health, and helps with alertness, work productivity, and promotes a healthier lifestyle. 

Research publications

Radio 89.3 FM Influence: Expert tips to minimise COVID-19 related stress with Professor Kua Ee Heok

For better sleep: Muscle relaxation tape by Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, Prof Kua E.H

Stay Well to Stay Strong: 6 tips on sleep by Singapore Health Promotion Board

Mental Wellness & Resilience resources

Q&A with A/Prof Jason Yap on the science behind some of the COVID-19 measures

Radio 89.3FM interview with Prof Kua Ee Heok: Resilience & guarding your mental health

NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine: “The COVID-19 Chronicles” series

Age Well Everyday (AWE) Advisory: Stay home activities for seniors

Try this mental health themed bingo by our YEAR Study team created to inspire! 🙂

Age Well Everyday Programme [Free online modules via SUSS’s UniLEARN portal]
MSC and SUSS jointly developed a Lifestyle Management course as part of MSC’s AWE programme. Comprising a total of six modules, the online course is specially curated for seniors to learn about healthy eating, keeping a balanced diet, benefits of regular health screening, stress management skills as well as strategies to manage and cope with stress.

From now until 31 May 2020, the first two modules of the Lifestyle Management course will be offered for free. Interested members of public can visit the SUSS UniLEARN portal at https://free.unilearn.edu.sg to sign up or find out more about the course.

Mini-AWE online Zoom sessions

Session 1: 15 May

During this circuit breaker period, we will be hosting mini-AWE sessions online for existing AWE participants. Different topics will be discussed, and seniors who are not existing participants can follow the uploaded videos to keep active at home.

Session 2: 23 May

The 3 areas covered this week includes: Ways to combat anxiety & keeping active, Mindful Awareness Practice, and Horticulture: Make your own soil fertiliser using ingredients at home. Next session: 6 Jun, 20 Jun.

Session 3: 6 June

The session started off with a Mindful Awareness Practice by Mrs Wee, followed by a Health Talk by A/Prof Rathi Mahendran, and a music reminiscence segment by Malika from Eunos CC. Thank you for the warm participation and support! We look forward to the next session, which will include a therapeutic horticulture segment. Watch the video to find out more about what you can prepare for the upcoming session!

Session 4: 20 June

The 4th session of the AWE programme conducted via Zoom covered the following areas: Mindful Awareness Practice by Mrs Wee, Health talk on stress and insomnia by Prof Goh Lee Gan, Therapeutic horticulture (pandan propagation) by NParks, and Music Rythm by RSVP. For those who did not manage to attend, please feel free to watch the guided video in your free time 

To receive more updates, follow us on our Facebook page here! Please feel free to share this post with your friends and family who may find it useful. We would like to thank all those who have been involved in contributing to the above content to make Singapore a better, more cohesive and caring community. #SGUnited #COVID19 #mentalhealth

🤳 During this extended Circuit Breaker period, take care of your emotional and mental well-being. If you feel overwhelmed and need to speak to someone, please see below helplines for emotional/psychological support. 📞 List of community helplines: go.gov.sg/helplines

 

Fully dependent on philanthropic support and grants, Mind Science Centre is led by passionate medical experts who volunteer their time and expertise to undertake impactful translational research and develop meaningful community programmes that will be scaled nationally.

To fulfil Mind Science Centre’s continuing mission, your endearing contribution will enable us to build emotional resilience and support the community to overcome crises.

Find out more at https://nus.edu/2VqgKUY