Snacking or walking: since the corona crisis we have been overdoing it

I am fully team snack: I check my fridge sixteen times a day to see if there's still a piece of cheese or a freshly baked filled cookie.

That quarantine does more to us than we think. We are all a bit exaggerated, we go overboard, we are a tad obsessive. We do everything we do to the extreme.

Because it's not so crazy: we are all a bit afraid of what awaits us in the future. We live in uncertain times, we can do little. What we can do is, for example, walk. Or snack, bake, cook. Or binge-watch Netflix. And we all do that, en masse. Not a little, but every day 18,000 steps or binge three seasons in a row.

People react very differently to the new situation during the corona time. We pick up old hobbies, try new things, do DIY, puzzle, read books. We have more time than ever and that does special things to a person. We want to lose weight, exercise, do juice cleanses, watch movies until we fall asleep or finally decorate that house in a hip and fancy way. We actually do that because we miss our daily routine. According to psychologists, that extreme behavior can also be explained: it is a way to cope with your negative emotions. Working very hard, eating a lot, running a lot: we go overboard because we feel uncomfortable with life as it is now. We crave that distraction and can't stop, even if we already have six homemade banana breads in the fridge.

Besides snacking, I have developed something else in the corona crisis. I like to drink a glass of wine in the garden in the sun, lying flat on the pallets with cushions and a bowl of truffle chips within reach. But yes, since Tuesday feels the same as Friday, days and times don't matter much anymore. And there lies the danger for this interesting and profound new hobby of mine: I don't have to go anywhere. I don't have to do anything. And the sun is shining, so oh well, what does it matter that it's still a long way from the weekend? Weekend, who even knows what that is anymore. Chips are crispy every day of the week.

Experts recommend that when exhibiting extreme behavior, you take a moment to think about why you are doing it. Do you feel mentally well, what can you do differently at home to feel happier? Give yourself permission to not know everything sometimes, to simply feel down. That's okay too. These are unprecedented times, don't expect yourself to celebrate every day, glitter and glamour is. Take it easy. And eat a filled cookie. Sometimes, not too often.