- Therapist and "Queer Eye" star Karamo Brown shared his tips for fighting the pandemic blues with Insider .
- Brown said scheduling in self-care, writing and mailing letters to loved ones, offering to help those in need, and allowing yourself to be unproductive are some of the best ways to fight stress and anxiety.
- More people than ever before are experiencing symptoms of clinical anxiety and depression due to the coronavirus pandemic.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
The isolating nature of pandemic stay-at-home orders have left people feeling anxious, lonely, depressed, and disconnected.
To combat the pandemic blues, it's important to carve out self-care time, connect with friends from afar, offer help to others, and allow yourself to be unproductive at times, "Queer Eye" resident therapist and culture expert Karamo Brown told Insider.
Schedule in self-care time, and don't flake on yourself
Most people have a pulse on what they need to feel happy and recharged, but don't put those needs into action, according to Brown.
"A lot of times, people find themselves going through their day and they're like, 'Oh my gosh, I didn't take any time for me. I didn't take a self-care moment. I didn't check in with myself mentally or emotionally," Brown told Insider.
He's fallen into the same trap, but learned that setting reminders made it easier to prioritize himself.
Brown sets at least one daily reminder using the alarm app on his phone and labels the reminder with the activity he wants to do, whether it's taking five minutes to breathe and practice mindfulness, or 15 minutes to go for a walk.
Reconnect with loved ones
For folks who feel like they have too much alone time on their hands, Brown suggested reconnecting with loved ones in a meaningful way, like through a Zoom hangout.
Brown himself reignited his love of handwritten notes during the pandemic.
"I haven't written letters in forever, and it's been so cool. And then to get a letter back in the mail has been so awesome," Brown said. "I think we forget about these little things that we used to do back in the day. Re-engage with that, and have this excitement of getting something in the mail."
The "Queer Eye" star is also hosting a virtual Holiday Spectacular with money-management app Zelle as a way to help everyone at home find connection during an isolating year.
Help others to boost your own mood
In addition to taking care of yourself, Brown said taking care of others is a great way to boost your mood.
"I think one of the things that we don't realize is that when we give to others, it does something chemically to our bodies where we feel better," he said.
This concept, called "emotional contagion," has been well-documented in scientific research.
Brown suggested lending support to people who are grieving right now by offering to listen to their experiences, sending them a hot meal, or offering to run errands.
Give yourself permission to be unproductive
Pandemic living has allowed people to take on new hobbies, pursue online courses, and complete do-it-yourself home renovations.
But Brown said learning to enjoy doing nothing is as important as being productive. He gives himself one or two "crazy nights" out of every month to do just that.
For Brown, that could mean picking up a six-pack of beer and dancing around his living room to Beyoncé. Other times, it involves reading a book or taking an extra-luxurious shower.
"What it does is it gets me into the mindset that, 'OK, right now I need to do something for myself,'" said Brown.
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