COVID coping: How to make the most of quarantine mood swings

Editor's Note: This is a preview of USA TODAY's newsletter Staying Apart, Together, a guide to help us all cope with a world changed by coronavirus. If you would like it in your inbox on Tuesdays and Saturdays, subscribe here.

At a virtual appointment with my doctor this week, she asked a simple question: Are you feeling better?

Even about a specific issue unrelated to the pandemic, it's a loaded question. Am I feeling better? Is my depression better, or did I just not read the news today? Am I feeling worse, or do I just feel stir crazy in my apartment and don't want to watch more TV?

I shared these concerns and she, thankfully, reminded me that I'm not alone in feeling this way. For me, at least, quarantine has been a series of emotional highs and lows. As many of you can probably attest, the pandemic has caused my mood to be frequently low. But the moments of happiness I can find – celebrations over Zoom, playing a board game with my husband, going for a walk in perfect weather, learning a friend is pregnant – those feel exaggerated since we don't get to be joyful and have fun as frequently as usual. Heck, I did a little dance this week just learning that my co-worker Brett Molina started watching "The Great British Baking Show."

I just try to ride my moods as best I can, be thankful for my health and take care of myself. I know I've said that before, but, hey, good advice doesn't have an expiration date.

Today's celebration: Christmas in July

I have a friend whose birthday is Christmas Day, and she always has her birthday party in July, when people can actually get together without busy holiday schedules.

She's obviously not the first person to think of Christmas in July, and especially as the pandemic rages, there is something alluring about finding a little holiday cheer amid a heat wave. And I'm not the only one who thinks so.

My colleague Jennifer McClellan wrote about her daughter's desire for some red and green festivities:

I myself have been struck by a desire to buy gifts for friends and family (self-soothing retail therapy) to help combat quarantine boredom. I sent my sister advanced Rubik's Cubes (Triangle shapes! More than nine squares per side!) after she mastered the usual one as a quarantine hobby.

Our friends in the USA TODAY NETWORK even compiled a list of 25 ways to celebrate Christmas in July. My favorite? Watching the best Muppets Christmas special. It's not "The Muppets Christmas Carol." It's "Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas," thank you very much.

Go to the story here for 24 more ideas.

Today's reads

• No Halloween in 2020? As we get into the dog days of summer, we're already wondering what a coronavirus fall will look like.

• We talked to the author of kids' book "Wearing a Mask Says I Love You." "The mask needed its hero story," Dr. Jen Welter told my colleague Cydney Henderson. "As coaches, we're always looking for ways to reach people because if you can’t reach them, you can’t teach them."

• Let's all enjoy very cute pictures of Prince George for his 7th birthday.

• This one is more of a listen: On Sunday, a special episode of our daily news podcast "5 Things" will look back on the legacy U.S. Rep. John Lewis and his work with the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee and historic marches from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. You'll learn how Lewis' start in Nashville continues to inspire protests for racial justice in 2020. Podcast publishes Sunday morning here.

Today's pet

I'm biased because I grew up with a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, but oh, my gosh, look at these cuties.

From owner Liz: "Gracie and Katie cat are best buds and love to hang out in Katie’s cat tree and wait for deliveries."

A dog in a cat tree? I can't handle it.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Staying Apart, Together: Make the most of quarantine mood swings