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How Beach Therapy Helps Me To Relieve Stress and Isolation

I’ve already lost count on what day of quarantine today but I think it has been almost 4 months since it started and I’m striving really hard to deal & cope up with my mental health. The coronavirus outbreak has seriously made me feel lonely, isolated, stressed, and anxious. But please do know that it’s completely okay to feel unmotivated sometimes. Don’t push yourself too hard. Trust me, I have been learning it the hard way and I know we can do this.

With all these crazy feelings mixed up, I get up everyday and do small things to help myself to relieve from stress and isolation.

So, I did the beach therapy.

Guess I’m lucky enough to live in a place with beaches nearby and easy-to-reach mountain peaks. When our province, Zamboanga del Norte has put under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ), some beaches and resorts were finally allowed to operate given that the respective owners must follow proper health protocols and safety precautions.

With my siblings home and my parents are spending less time at work, we used this chance for quality time. We celebrated Mother’s Day at a private beach. It was a 30-minute road trip from home. Arrived there at around 9AM, had lunch together, and then went home at 3’o clock.

girl on the beach

It limits my news intake.

That beach trip was a great time for me to take a break from news and social media that usually trigger my anxiety since being at home for me means “always” checking social media. Now, I am limiting myself within 2-3 reliable news sources intake a day. That should be enough to get informed. Good thing I don’t have trouble detaching myself from social media for awhile. It’s the best mental detoxifier for me.

I just laid there on the sand with my eyes closed, listening to the beach waves crashing into the shoreline, chillin’ with my favorite repeat playlist, and smelling the ocean air. It’s everything that I needed on that moment and I have never felt so relaxed this quarantine as I was that day.

There’s a really deep joy in simple moments.

When my anxieties slowly crawling deep into me as isolation drags on, I know I needed to take action to stay healthy and mentally fit. Sometimes, I hate the feeling of emptiness and lifelessness because it sucks the hell out of me. I’m never going to get used with sulking but I don’t hate it either. There are just really times when you needed to feel it to be able to move on.

Luckily, we went out for another beach trip a few weeks later to celebrate Father’s Day. Feeling the sand on my toes and hair again has made me feel at ease. It was a blissful day.

girl on the beach

It changes my mindset.

The therapy has avoided me to think too much about the worst case scenarios on my head and I started to practice gratitude. Seeing my love ones in good health condition amidst this pandemic, having food to eat on our table and roof on our head are some of the things that I’m truly grateful for.

To some, beach vacations means another Instagram post. But for people like me who has gone through tough times and difficult phase fighting my own demons just to stay alive means ,of course another cute Instagram post and also the best therapy to lessen the possibility of getting eaten up by depression.

It has brought back my motivation to be productive.

Again, it’s completely okay to feel unmotivated.

The huge effort that you do in an 8-5 job is a couple of times effort that you need to do in a full-time freelancing career because you don’t just do all the business work, but you also take care of yourself in all aspect. You make yourself secured and always plan the coming days ahead. One day you’re productive, but there would be days when you don’t want to do nothing but slack off, and more days when it’s going to be stressful because of deadlines.

When I got home after that second beach trip, I have doubled the productivity of my work and that insanely surprised me.

I also started to take advantage of the slower pace and free time like, enjoying the small things, learning more about plants and rereading some old favorite novels. Also, I tried to workout at night just to see the difference when I do it in a day.

girl beach silhouette

It gives me a sense of control and purpose.

Almost everyone is on the internet and the web is slowly taking over the world’s economy from business to education. As someone who has the means to help small business owners online, my way of support is buying from them and promoting their goods and services for free. It has given me that sense of purpose. The reason as to why I’m very passionate about what I do is really making sense to me now and it’s a good way for me to stay in control.

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Comments

  • July 31, 2020

    Waaaah I am so inggit! Ako usually pag nai-stress beach ang go to place ko. Too bad we cannot travel pa and walang nearby beaches here in Manila. Hopefully next year maging ok na lahat and for sure lagi ako nasa beach.

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  • Emman James
    July 16, 2020

    Akala ko ako lang yun. But going to the beach is definitely the best therapy. The sound of the waves, the wind, the serenity.

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  • July 15, 2020

    I agree with this. Going to the beach is very therapeutic for me??

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  • July 12, 2020

    you are sooo lucky to be near the beach. i haven’t been to one this summer yet. the sound of the waves is indeed refereshing.

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    • July 31, 2020

      I wish I live near the beach. We were supposed to go to Boracay end of March / early April for our birthday but the pandemic happened. We both love going to the beach because, same as you, we get to step away from the daily hustle and toxic news. We barely use our phones, aside from taking photos/videos and occasional posting on social media, and instead spend a lot of quality time together. The waves are also calming and I could sit by the shore all day if not for the glaring heat.

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  • July 12, 2020

    I am 100 % agree with everything you mentioned on your blog. There’s something about being on the beach that relieves stress and anxiety. I felt the beauty of the beach when I visited Maui, Hawaii in 2019. We stayed in a hotel with a beach view and minutes away from the beach. Every night, we open the windows and our doors in the terrace to hear the sound of the waves, the fresh breeze from the sea and to feel the fresh air. It was very therapeutic!! can’t wait to visit that place again!!!

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  • July 11, 2020

    Yung silence, sound of waves, and chirping of some birds lang ang maririnig mo, sobrang nakaka-relax. You are so lucky, you live in a place with nearby beautiful beaches.

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  • July 10, 2020

    Napakaswerte mo at malapit ka lang sa beach! hindi pa ako nakakapagbeach this year and I badly needed it. Grabe din ang stress ko ngayon at ang pagpunta talga sa beach nakakarelax at nakakabawas ng stress

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  • July 10, 2020

    How are you now Misskhae? I hope your’re still sane during these trying times. We really can’t avoid seeing anxiety-inducing news all over different media platforms, and it’s good to know you had your way to detach yourself for a while with all these stuff and the toxicity of the present happenings. I don’t know but the brine of the smell of the sea and the blowing sounds of the waves are so calming like it’s speaking to my soul. It’s like my safe haven, I can find mental peace and tranquility. And that is why I couldn’t agree more with you. I believe in you, we can do this. <3

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  • July 10, 2020

    Siguro kahit sino magiging at peace din talaga kapag malapit sila sa dagat. Good for you and don’t think too much. Kaya Natin to lagpasan.

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  • Dianne
    July 10, 2020

    I love how you are coping up. This pandemic affected us in so many levels whether we admit it or not. Beach therapy really works. As much as I want to go to the beach, I couldn’t. haha. Social media can be really toxic especially now. Iwas na lang talaga sa social media. Ang gusto ko lang talaga now is for this pandemic to end. I miss home.

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    • momsshoutout
      July 11, 2020

      same with you i feel so stress free and chillax lalo na pag naka rining ng ocean waves and when i walk barefooted in the sand

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  • July 10, 2020

    Oh my Beach! Super miss ko na talaga mag-beach. Isa talaga ito sa stress-reliever. I went to beach year ago pa lang. Gonna do this beach therapy soon!

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  • blair villanueva
    July 10, 2020

    Beach is a cheapest and effective therapy. I am very keen to buy a property near the beach area, even the public ones 🙂

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  • July 10, 2020

    i feel you… grabe din ang chillaxation na binibigay ng beach sakin.. nakakamiss mag beach. buti na lang naka isa ako this year.

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  • July 10, 2020

    Awww. I really related to this. It’s great that you guys were able to spend a little bit of time at the beach tho. Here in the middle of the city, it is just so sad. There’s nowhere to go and nothing you can do. I long to be in an open space, but yeah just hanging in here for now.

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  • July 10, 2020

    Waaaaaah! Nakapag beach na siya! Nainggit naman ako! I am one of those who finds solace when visiting beaches or just exploring places. Though I gotta admit, I’m still anxious to go and travel. Unlike before, whenever stressed I’ll just pack my bags and head to La Union. But now, I’m stuck in our backyard pool. Meh. I’ve always wanted to go Zamboanga, I think one of the beaches there is Dakak beach resort. ?

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  • July 9, 2020

    Beach is my happy place! Kaya super nalulungkot ako sa mga trips na na-cancel dahil dito sa pandemic. HUHU. Sana talaga maging maayos na ang lahat

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  • July 9, 2020

    Thank you for sharing this information.The Beach is one the best place to relax!

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  • July 9, 2020

    Thank you for sharing this information! Beach is one of the best place to relax and refresh yourself!

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  • July 8, 2020

    The beach really is a good therapy. There is this healing vibes once you are able to hear the crashing waves, and transcending effect once you felt your buoyancy against the salty waters. I really missed the beach and Zambales is not yet accepting tourists from Pampanga as of posting of this comment.

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