The Wellness Trends We've Seen in 2021

As we head into the final weeks of 2021, we wanted to revisit this article where Jennifer talks about the various ways, we tried to battle boredom, feel productive, deal with social isolation, and handle uncertainty during the pandemic. As we tried home organization, spa days, and emptying our Netflix queues, we did find some self-care tools that will carry through into the years ahead. Even as restrictions are loosened, we can carry the self-care practices we developed into the future as we adapt to living with the virus. 

Here are four new wellness trends we’ve seen from the survival skills we leveraged at the start of the pandemic.

Baking and Breaking Bread

At the start of the pandemic, being unable to go about our usual routines and access most recreational activities caused a lot of boredom. Lockdown necessitated that we find novel ways to pass the time with limited options but seemingly unlimited time. This led to a slowing down movement, with many taking the time to engage in time consuming but rewarding activities that they otherwise would not have made time for, such as baking bread from scratch. 

Along with this increased mindfulness came an increased sense of togetherness. With everyone’s schedules shifting to a remote context, we had more time to connect with our families and those closest to us. Many of us got to sit down and eat meals with our families, a practice that we should maintain even as the pandemic dwindles down.  

The Joys of the Great Outdoors 

There are so many benefits to spending time outdoors. Time spent outside positively impacts our heart health, maintains overall life satisfaction, and increases lifespan. With that in mind, an increased interest in spending time outdoors is one of the few silver linings of the pandemic. Research from the Cornell Lab indicates that a rise in engagement of 29% on the birdwatching platform eBird. Additionally, there were a lot of first-time visitors to national parks in the US during the pandemic. The uptick in gardening, hiking, and other outdoor activities demonstrates that through all the hardship, we found healthful ways to adapt and cope.

 New Ways to Access Healthcare 

With COVID-19 restricting healthcare options and capacity, we had to put innovative measures into place to address people’s health needs. The pandemic necessitated that we restructure the delivery of both physical and mental healthcare. We had to step up our existing initiatives to digitize healthcare dissemination, adapting to a new world. In turn, this has made treatment more easily and conveniently accessible to those who need it. Both telemedicine and teletherapy rose significantly in 2020 and thereafter. To illustrate, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, only 2.1% of respondents to a survey by Patients for Patient Safety Canada reported using tele-psych, compared with 84.7% at present.

New Ways of Managing Self-Care at Home and Work

When schools switched to a remote context, this put a huge burden on employees with children who now had to balance their jobs with full-time childcare and involvement with their child’s schooling, as well as taking care of their child’s and their own mental health. This and similar experiences with novel stressors related to the pandemic helped to destigmatize the conversation around mental health and revealed the need for more supports from employers. Employers can support burnt out parents by providing flexible hours, in-house childcare, and subsidies related to childcare costs, which may become a standard across industries. 

Last year forced us to reflect on our real priorities. With our lives stripped down to the essentials, it gave us new perspective on our values. It also revealed what our most pertinent needs are, and what types of structural changes and adaptations are required to support them. We've been working at unsustainable levels for years, and this last year had a hugely negative impact on the workforce. Burnout is terrifyingly high. 

It wasn't easy, and because of that, we had to build innovative solutions to get us through. We had to adapt and survive. But in all the bad, we are hopeful that we can still find the good. Last year's pain has now given us the self-care tools to heal in 2022 and beyond.

For more information on well-being and burnout, check out Jennifer’s new book here, or at your favourite book retailer.