How to do the 5 Ways to Wellbeing from Home

With many of our self-care activities like spending time with loved ones and going to the gym needing to be put on hold to help keep our communities safe, we're sharing our tips for how to keep doing the 5 Ways to Wellbeing from home.

We're sharing new tips every weekday on our Facebook page. Follow us to stay up to date with our latest 5 Ways to Wellbeing tips.

Each week we'll update this list to round up our tips into one place. Please note, all resources were available at the time of sharing, but may have since been taken down. 

Keep Learning

• Learn a new sign every day with free British Sign Language lessons. These videos were created by the British Deaf Association for Sign Language Week, 16th - 22nd March 2020.
  One of our local community centres is also sharing a daily video on their Facebook page, teaching simple words and phrases in British Sign Language. Follow Bedhampton Community Centre to learn with them.
• Visit the best museums or art galleries around the world on a virtual tour. This list of 10 virtual tours includes the Sistine Chapel, the Natural History Museum and the Musee d'Orsay. Many museums are also offering new content online at this time, such as the Grammy Museum's Museum at Home collection, featuring exclusive interviews with Grammy-winning artists.  
• Learn Origami. Discover how to fold a paper frog that really jumps! And if you enjoy that, you could develop your skills further with free origami tutorials from Paper Kawaii.com

Connect

• Get video chatting. If you or your loved ones aren't sure how to get started, this simple guide to setting up video calls with your friends and family might come in handy. 
• Start a virtual book club with free e-books from Hampshire Libraries or free children's audiobooks from Audible. If you'd prefer to join an existing group, you can find one on the Reading Agency's directory of virtual reading groups.
• Join a virtual art group with Bath's Holburne Museum. Every Wednesday the group create artwork inspired by the museum's pieces and submit them to be shared with everyone on their Instagram page, Changing Lives Through Art. Find out more and join in on the Pathways to Wellbeing page of their website.

Take Notice

• Try mindfulness. If you're not sure what 'take notice' is all about, watch this 10-minute introduction to Mindfulness by one of the founders of Headspace.
• Get some headspace. If you found that short introduction interesting, you can try Headspace for free, with their Weathering the Storm content created specifically for our present situation.
• Take notice in nature, with the Wildlife Trusts' live webcams. If you're missing those relaxing walks watching the wildlife, you'll enjoy these live feeds of nature reserves across the UK, where you can look out for birds, bats, badgers and bunnies from the comfort of your home.

Give

• Sign up to be an NHS Volunteer Responder. Opportunities to help your community respond to the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic include collecting and delivering supplies, transporting equipment, or phoning people for a chat and a check-in. Volunteer at GoodSAM or take a look at the government guidelines on how to help safely.
• Remember to be generous to yourself. Just by following the official guidelines you're already giving up a lot to help keep your community safe. Take a moment to appreciate all that you're already doing, and be as kind to yourself. 
• Share helpful information. One quick and easy thing we can all do is to check the information we're sharing is correct and helpful. You can find a checklist on how to check information is correct at sharechecklist.gov.uk. One helpful bit of information to share could be the Helplines Partnership's directory of official helplines, or this NHS list of mental health helplines to help your loved ones get support when they need it.

Be Active

• Try a 10-minute home workout. These short videos from the NHS need no equipment, and aim to help you improve your strength and general health. There are six 10-minute workouts to try.
• Join PE with Joe for a free 30-minute workout every morning at 9am, or catch up later with the Body Coach on YouTube. It's a fabulous way to get active with the whole family, and what seems like the whole of the UK at the moment! 
• Get Dancing with free online dance classes like these Disney Dancealongs from This Girl Can, this series of Family Dance Workshops from Sadler's Wells Theatre or, for the grown-ups, these beginners' ballet lessons for adults from the Royal Academy of Dance.