VIEW HealthBit CXXVII: Staying Well While Working from Home

As novel coronavirus cases increase across the globe, I hear a lot of fear in people. Fear does not help. Fear hurts. Preparation and thoughtfulness are needed. Fear is not. This virus may not be acting quite like a normal virus, but thankfully prevention tactics to help avoid it- along with any viral infection- remain the same. I will not touch on the things the media has- hand washing, distancing, etc. Instead I will focus on some other things that are known to be protective against any virus, and then move into how to best situate yourself in your new, temporary “office”.

Protective Measures

  1. Quality sleep- 7- 8 hours, preferably beginning no later than 10pm
  2. Water- lots of water. It has been flushing toxins since toxins came to be. ½ your bodyweight in ounces of water daily is key
  3. Exercise- Just move. However and whenever you can. Preferably outside and in the sun. Sweating gets you bonus detox points
  4. Mindfulness and stress-reducing technique These are as important as ever. Breathe. Mediate. Do Yoga. Get off social media is that is a trigger. 
  5. Eat well- Lots of green, leafy veggies, garlic, turmeric, lean meats, no fried and processed foods. Add in the following vitamins as listed: Vitamin D: 5000 IU/day, Vitamin C: 2000mg/day, Probiotic- one daily before bed, Saline and/or Propolis spray
    (I have heard this virus lives in the sinuses and/or palate so keeping these areas moist is very helpful. Note- Propolis comes from bees, so if you have a bee allergy, avoid this one )

Working From Home

In order to reduce physical stress on the body while you work, you may need to make modifications to your home workstations depending on what they look like. As a review, feel free to peek at my previous posts on ergonomics and proper alignment while using a laptop, and see the image below.

As they exist in nature, laptops are not ergonomically correct. In order to make a workstation ergonomically correct a few modifications are needed.

  1. Use a wired or wireless mouse and pad
  2. Use a wired or wireless keyboard
  3. Use a laptop stand, or prop the laptop up on a stack of books, bringing it to eye level or just below
  4. Use an ergonomic desk chair if you have one. If you do not, add pillows below the buttocks and behind the low back for support
  5. Try to set up your workstation at a desk or table that allows your elbows to rest at a 90 degree angle and feet flat on the floor

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