Connect
Make the time to catch up with friends, spend time with family, or reconnect with your colleagues
Digital Coffee Morning
While cafes are due to reopen in Ireland in June, grabbing a coffee with a friend or relative in a cafe environment might still have its challenges. In line with Government guidelines, you can now have a few people in your home or in your garden for a coffee morning. Get the gang together and have a long overdue catch up over a cuppa and a cake. Or if you’d prefer to keep it virtual, why not ‘buy’ your friend a coffee instead by arranging a video call and donating the cost of a coffee to Pieta? You could go one step further and take a screenshot of the call, post it on social media and nominate a friend to do the same.
Whether it’s a one to one catch up, or a group coffee morning, you can help Pieta by donating the cost of a coffee. Register your event, and set up a Zoom group call where each person could donate the cost of their drink. It’s really simple to do, just calculate what you’d normally spend buying a drink for your friend(s) and donate this to Pieta .
Digital Book Club
Why not use our FeelGood book club as the perfect way to re-Connect with friends post lock down, simply choose a book for you and your friends to read and schedule some video calls to discuss it chapter by chapter.
Here are some great titles to get you started but feel free to choose a feel good book of your own, you can choose to read online or get yourself a hardback.
This is a great way of keeping in touch with people, and although the conversation might stray from the book it’s a great excuse to get together. When you register you’ll be given an online platform to make it easy to invite and share your event and make a donation.
Outdoor Games Night
In line with the Government's road map for reopening Ireland, we are now permitted to host people from outside our households and with the great weather we are expecting this summer, an outdoor games night would be the perfect way to re-Connect with family and friends
Outdoor games are a great addition to any gathering or BBQ events, the possibilities are endless but here are a few ideas to get you started; Good old fashioned game of cards for the whole group to play; Outdoor Chess / Checkers: Outdoor Jenga; you can use cardboard boxes or shoe boxes to build a tower, see the excitement rise as the pieces are taken away one by one, a great game for all ages. Get a gang together to host a Murder Mystery Night for a bit of fun as you try and piece together who's the guilty guest! You could ask all taking part to make a donation to your online fundraising page, in the knowledge their donation is supporting Pieta the participants will surely have the feel good factor.
FeelGood BBQ
BBQs are definitely going to play a big part in Summer 2020! And with so many birthdays/special occasions celebrated in isolation this year, what better excuse to invite your friends/family over to celebrate any missed events in some of this glorious sunshine that we’ve been told is on the way. Of course you don’t need that as an excuse to light up that BBQ!
All you have to do is register your event and invite your family and friends by sharing on social media. Or pick up the phone and do it the old fashioned way! Just remember to keep in line with current Government guidelines on social distancing. You could suggest a nominal donation amount on your event page (e.g. €5 per person) for those that would like to donate to Pieta.
Quiz Night
Online quizzes have been one of the few good things to come out of lockdown in the past few months so many of us are fully brushed up on our general knowledge. With restrictions easing, you can now host an actual quiz night in your home or garden for a small group of people. A really easy way to Re-Connect with family and friends.
Why not choose a favourite topic within your group, perhaps Fr. Ted, the champions league or maybe general knowledge would be more your style. A simple Google search will bring up a huge range of questions on any topic. To add to that FeelGood feeling all of your quizzers could make an online donation to your fundraising page which is automatically set up for you as you register.
Movie Night
Who doesn’t love watching a movie? While Netflix has provided us with hours of entertainment during lockdown with various shows, there’s nothing quite like a classic movie, so why not reconnect with friends and organise a FeelGood Movie night? In line with the current Government guidelines, we can now invite a small group of people over to ur homes. Just enough time to stick some popcorn on and watch a movie together!
Just register your event and invite whoever you’d like to share the experience with. If it’s not possible for your friends to join you in your home, or if you can’t decide which friends make the cut without leaving someone out, you could always have a virtual movie night instead. Pick the movie, pick the time and for those of you who like to chat during a movie, set up a group WhatsApp to discuss the plot and possible endings. And for those of you who don’t like to chat during a movie – you can always ‘mute’ the chat ? Just don’t forget to donate!
Be Active
Get yourself and others moving, and have some fun along the way by hosting or taking part in an activity
Walk / Run / Marathon
We all know the importance of being Active and the role it plays in our mental wellbeing, we are asking you to set yourself a challenge within your own ability to get active, it could be a run, a walk or a crawl.
With many of the annual timed walking and running events cancelled or postponed this summer why not take on the challenge yourself, set yourself a goal and keep track of your progression on your personal dashboard. We've hooked up Fitness Software such as FitBit and Strava on the site to help you keep track of all your activities.
You may decide to accumulate your times or distances over a few weeks or train towards a single event, either way your dashboard will help you keep track along the way while also enabling you to keep your supporters up to date and allow them to donate to your personal online fundraising page. When planning activities do take into account the current government guidelines in relation to Covid-19.
Hike / Swim / Cycle
Due to current restrictions so many of our favourite yearly events have been postponed this year but being Active is not something we should put on hold. Why not join up with some friends and go to your local swimming spot, maybe cycle a route that you love or hike that trail that makes you FeelGood. You can link your FitBit or Strava accounts to your FeelGood event to allow all your activities to be tracked.
By registering to host any of these event you can choose to go solo or bring friends along to take part and let’s face it, getting competitive with friends is always fun. You can keep track of your progress by syncing up with your online fundraising page to show your supporters times or distances. It’s simple to register, easy to share, fun to do and makes you FeelGood knowing you’re supporting Pieta. Don’t forget about the Government restrictions on travel and social distancing when planning a group activity.
Yoga
Yoga and FeelGood With Pieta go hand in hand, what better way to be Active and find the feeling than Yoga, whether you’re a beginner or a teacher there are options for every level.
You may choose to follow an online class or perhaps you’d like to host an online class, you may want to get together with friends in the park for a sunrise yoga session or simply set some time aside to make yourself FeelGood by practicing yoga at home. It’s easy to share your fundraising page for people to support you or invite people to join you either digitally or in person. Remember when getting together in groups be sure to adhere to the current government guidelines in relation to social distancing.
Home Workout
If you’re missing the gym, or your usual walk to work, or if you don’t know where to start with keeping active at home – then Pieta is here to help! Whether it’s an early morning home workout or a lunchtime blast, the benefits of exercise for both mental and physical health are plentiful. From novice to advanced fitness levels, we have something for everyone to do in the comfort of your own home or if the weather is good, your own garden!
All you have to do is register your event and set a challenge for yourself and share with friends and family to allow them donate to your fundraising page. There are so many different home workout videos out there, depending on your fitness levels, preference, and how much space you have to work with. The WHO have given some tips and advice on how to stay healthy at home here There are also countless home work out videos, one of the most influential fitness instructors over these past few months has been Joe Wicks, who has countless videos for home workouts including 20min Ultimate Beginners Low Impact which is great for anyone who hasn’t exercised for a while, together with a 10min work out for seniors and finally, something for the children with a PE 30mins kids workout. There’s something for everyone and it can be done anywhere with an internet connection.
Virtual Relay Race
In a world where most things have gone virtual, it’s nice to know you can still challenge your friends to a race even if meeting up still isn’t possible for you. If you’re part of a company or running club, why not get some teams together and set a challenge. If you are tired of solo workouts or runs and need a change, a virtual relay race could be just the thing to make exercise exciting again.
Healthy competition is an important part of sports, and with social distancing still in place, it’s something that a lot of people haven’t been able to be a part of these past few months. Holding a virtual relay race will not only help satisfy that competitive hunger, it will get you active, help you connect with friends and if you decide to set up a fundraising page for the event, it will help raise vital funds for Pieta at the same time. All you have to do is register your event, pick your teams, set your challenge and get going! Don’t forget to share your fundraising page on social media!
Donate Your Commute
With the majority of workplaces still encouraging employees to work from home, many people are saving both time and money on commuting. If you normally travel to work by car or by public transport, you can help support Pieta by donating what you would have spent on your commute to work. Just calculate what you would normally spend for the week/month and donate directly to Pieta here. If you are lucky enough to usually walk or cycle to work, you are already getting the benefit of exercise, saving money, and helping the environment – but you can still join in and donate your commute.
Once you register your event, you can decide how you’d like to donate. The average commute to work in Ireland is 28mins*. Just calculate the cost of your normal weekly commute, e.g. €4 per day x 5 = €20 and donate the weekly/monthly amount you are saving on your fundraising page. Or you could donate the cost of the TIME you saved by calculating what 28mins pay would be and donate that amount instead. Sharing your page on social media will really help with encouraging others to do the same!
*Figures taken from CSO
FeelGood
Why not get involved in something that helps you and those around you FeelGood
Self Care
Self-Care can be defined as “caring for your body, mind, and spirit” taking actions to tend to your overall well-being. Self-Care is anything “that affirms and strengthens your physical, psychological, relational, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Looking after yourself is about maintaining a healthy relationship with your body and mind.
We are all living in a very strange time and need to set some time aside for ourselves to FeelGood. Perhaps take the time to relax and just unwind or if you’re feeling cooped up you could get out in the fresh air. Self-Care is all about you, so take some time to think about what makes you FeelGood. Here are a few was to get started; aim for a healthy diet, take lunch breaks, go for a walk at lunchtime, take your dog for a walk after work, get some exercise before/after work regularly or just sit and relax.
Meditation
Our number one priority at the moment should be looking after ourselves and those around us, meditation is the ultimate way of getting into that FeelGood zone. There are so many ways of taking part in meditation.
Guided meditation can help with all aspects of life and is very easily accessed online for those wishing to take part, here is just one of many links to a guided meditation session. If you are interested in hosting either an online or in person meditation session you can register here. Your online fundraising page gives people the option to support your event as well as giving you the opportunity to document your meditation journey in your own personal blog. If you are hosting an event please do take into account the current social distancing restrictions set in place by the Government.
FeelGood Food
We have all used the term comfort food or cheat meals at some point but why not get into FeelGood food, this is anything that make your body FeelGood, something guilt free, really tasty and that fuels your body
There are countless recipes online for you to choose from, and different food types that can help to boost your mood. Choose something that makes you feelgood (try to keep it healthy so your body feels good too) we have found that one of the best ways for food to make us feel good is to bring people together. Why not host a come dine with me style event, you and some family or friends could each host a breakfast, a lunch or a dinner for each other over a period of weeks, perhaps making a donation in line with what you would normally spend on that meal when eating out. Don’t forget to take social distancing rules into account when planning.
Pay It Forward
The ultimate way to make both you and someone else, FeelGood! If you are unfamiliar with the phrase, to “Pay It Forward” means to do something nice for someone else, without receiving anything in return – other than a warm fuzzy feeling for doing it in the first place. It can be as big or as small as you would like it to be, there are no rules. It’s just about brightening up somebody else’s day and by doing so, you’ll feel all the better for it too. Here are some ideas, just remember to keep them Covid friendly!
You can register your event and share on social media to encourage others to do the same. If you’re struggling for some covid-friendly examples, here are a few ideas; Paying for toll fee for the person in the car behind you (even though you may never see them), donating blood, buying a stranger a coffee in your local take out café, even smiling at a stranger could mean the difference of a good or bad day for that person. Or why not try your hand at volunteering for a worthy cause? If you’d like to volunteer with Pieta you can get in touch here info@feelgood.ie
Post A Present
Sometimes going back to basics is a great idea. There is something quite nostalgic about receiving something in the post that isn’t a bill or junk mail or the latest thing you’ve ordered on Amazon. In a time where digital and virtual are the main words used for connecting with those we love, it’s nice to know there is another, more traditional way of showing you are thinking of someone.
Whether it’s a thoughtful gift, a nice card, or even a bar of chocolate – to know someone was thinking of you and went to the time and effort to post you something is a lovely feeling. Is there someone you haven’t been able to see during the restrictions but would love to let them know you’re thinking of them? Let someone know you’re thinking of them by sending them a gift, big or small in the post and brighten up their day. You could share on social media to encourage others to do the same.
Home Haircuts
With hairdressers and barbers opening back up at the end of June, waiting lists may be out the door for a while yet. If your hair is out of control and you need it sorted ASAP, look no further! We have tips and tutorials on how to cut/dye hair for beginners and if you’re happy with the end results, why not donate the cost of what you have saved on your new hairdo?
All you have to do, is register your event and, if you feel like sharing the experience, why not live stream the event so people can see your hairdressing skills in real time! While some people have gone down the quick and simple route of home haircuts such as this farmer, and while his ‘do’ looks great, we recommend you don’t try that at home but instead take your time, and watch some tutorials and give yourself the best chance at a great new hair cut or hairstyle! Whether you’re trying it yourself, or with someone in your own home that you trust with the welfare of your hair, we recommend going for ‘simple maintenance’ rather than ‘outrageous and trendy’.
