Covid-19 – An Update From Barnes & How To Look After Your Wellbeing

It’s been some time now since the outbreak of Covid-19 in the UK; and whilst many operations may have grounded to a halt, at the Barnes Group our key workers have been working hard throughout the pandemic to keep life in our country running as normal as it can be.

There’s fantastic coverage of the key workers who are battling Coronavirus on the front line such as nurses, care home workers and retail staff – one industry sometimes forgotten about, but crucially important, is logistics.

We are incredibly grateful for those who are still working tirelessly to keep the shelves in the shops full and our hospitals, care homes and medical centres supported. That includes our drivers and ever reliable Barnes Group workforce.

Covid-19 Response: What Have We Been Doing?

We are proceeding in good health at the Barnes Group, which is largely in thanks to our prolific continuous planning and the dedication of our trustworthy and reliable staff.

Alongside our usual operations, we have also now made a number of emergency deliveries of medical equipment to Northern Ireland. Our remarkable drivers are, without a doubt, as much on the frontline as others and for this we are truly grateful.

We are endeavouring to support our staff in any way that we can.

How To Look After Your Mental Health During Lockdown

This is an incredibly stressful and unprecedented time for all, life is far from normal and every day, workers – including our own – are putting others first.

There are many different working situations at the moment, some are working more than usual, others working at home and there are some who are furloughed.

These strange circumstances may well have a toll on your mental health and wellbeing, certainly not helped by having to stay at home as often as you can. Therefore, we wanted to put together a few tips on how you can take care of your mental health during Covid-19 lockdown:

• Digitally detox – taking yourself away from social media and the news, even just for an hour a day, can grant you a level of escapism and can really help with your mental wellbeing.
• Keep your brain engaged – if you’re working from home or even if you’re still working as usual but are feeling stressed out, it can help your concentration and motivation to keep your mind active with puzzles such as sudoku and crosswords. This is also good to mix with your digital detox, pop your phone on aeroplane mode and get stuck into something challenging.
• Remain connected – it’s easy to feel isolated when you can’t spend time with your friends and family, but we’re very fortunate to be in an era that gives us Zoom and Skype. Be sure to keep talking to your friends and family, it’s good for their health as well as your own.
• Learn something new – if you’re working from home or are furloughed, now is a great time to expand your education. Whether you want to brush up your knowledge or learn something completely new, now is the time. You can check out our blog for plenty of news and advice in transport and logistics, a sense of achievement can really support your mental wellbeing.
• Don’t put pressure on yourself – and finally, don’t feel pressured to act a certain way. This is an entirely new situation that we are all in, and there’s no ‘right’ way to feel. Do what makes you feel happy and secure.