Paula Poirier usually spends her afternoons getting ready to work behind the bar at the funky little midtown restaurant she owns with her partner, David Brocklehurst, who would be in the kitchen, prepping for dinner service.

But that was before COVID-19.

Now they’re both at home with their young son, Colton, pondering the future and trying to keep the stress at bay.

Unlike some restaurants, Function Bar hasn’t opened for takeout. That makes Poirier and Brocklehurst two of thousands of people across the city who’ve suddenly found themselves without an income because of the pandemic.

As much as it’s a global crisis, it’s also become a personal one for millions of Canadians who are struggling to deal with the stress of no income and a lot of extra time on their hands, all while in isolation.

From spending more time with kids and pets to cooking to music lessons, many of us are trying to find healthy ways to deal with the stress. Some are turning to alcohol or cannabis, which experts say can be OK — in moderation.

For Poirier and Brocklehurst, one of the ways they’re dealing is by keeping up with some of the familiar tasks of running a restaurant — albeit on a smaller scale.

“We’re cooking a lot at home. Some of it’s just testing recipes for the restaurant for when we can reopen,” said Poirier, who admits she’s also cleaned the condo top to bottom, more than once.

“I might start colour-coding the closets,” Poirier said with a wry chuckle. Keeping in touch with their staff — who have been laid off — is also crucial to maintaining some sense of normalcy.

“We’ve got a group chat going with all the staff. It’s good to check in with everybody. We usually see most of them every day when we’re open,” Poirier said.

For Guelph-based registered massage therapist Theresa Kolisnyk, a favourite way to deal with stress simply isn’t available, at a time when she most needs it because her clients can’t see her for appointments.

“I can’t go to the gym and punch the heavy bag. That’s usually a pretty big stress reliever for me,” Kolisnyk said. Gyms are considered non-essential, and closed by provincial order. Given that she and her husband — a freelance recording engineer — both usually work from home anyway, Kolisnyk admits the adjustment hasn’t been as big as it has been for some. Still, the stress is there, and she’s finding ways to cope.

“My dogs love it; they’ve been getting more walks than usual. And I’ve probably made enough perogies to feed the Ukrainian army,” Kolisnyk said. Kind gestures from customers — like dropping food on her doorstep — have also helped to keep her sane. Her husband, Kolisnyk said, has decided to learn a new, rather noisy, skill.

“My husband is teaching himself accordion through all this,” Kolisnyk said.

Picking up a new skill is just the type of thing people should be doing, said Prince Edward County-based therapist Anthony Santen, who specializes in dealing with stress, anxiety, anger and relationships.

“Do some investment. Not stocks and bonds. But invest in yourself. Tidy up your website. Take a class. Work on your resume,” Santen said. Doing those things is far more than just a distraction, Santen added. Self-improvement can keep people from spinning into self-doubt.

Santen filed for employment insurance because he can’t see clients in person, and because his second source of income — a bed and breakfast where he lives — isn’t allowed to be open for business. He’s using the extra time to play with his kids, and to build things.

“I’ve been building a chicken coop. I’ve been playing Beyblade with my son,” Santen said.

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Something he doesn’t recommend doing is spending too much time binge-watching the latest show on Netflix, drinking glass after glass of wine, or spending all day sitting around smoking dope.

“A glass of wine with dinner is fine. A joint on Friday night is great. But if you’re using these things to escape your current situation rather than process them, that’s a problem,” Santen said.

Sticking to some kind of schedule is a crucial way of keeping the stress from spiralling out of control, says Paula Allen, senior vice-president of research at employee assistance plan giant Morneau Shepell.

“It’s critical to build a new routine for yourself, even if it’s different than the one you were used to. A routine is vital,” Allen said. “It gives us a sense of calm. It gives us a sense of control and accomplishment.”

Without a routine? Things can get a lot worse, Allen said.

“The flip side is that if all the time just blends in, you can feel out of control and stressed even more. It adds to the anxiety.”

If schedules help, so too does trying to maintain some of the other elements of daily life, said Allen. Many of them are still doable from home, even if it’s a slightly different format.

“We need food every day. We need social contact every day. We need exercise every day. We need to do something fun every day. Go for a walk with your dog, if you have one. FaceTime friends, or call them,” Allen said.

And, she added, reach out to professionals if you need to, whether it’s your doctor, a psychiatrist or a counsellor. Some of that help can be accessed through your company’s employee assistance plan, even if you’ve been laid off.

“If your employer has an EAP, use it. This is what they’re there for,” Allen said.

“Don’t assume just because you’ve been laid off you’re no longer eligible for it. In most cases, people who’ve been laid off can still access their company’s EAP. There are employment counsellors, psychologists, online resources.”