Life after lockdown

I don't feel any different. Apart from being more likely to say 'No' to things that I don't want to do. But I think that's because I'm 3 years older.
If anything, I appreciate where we live more, because I realised how lucky we were and I appreciate being able to just turn up at my parents to see them whenever I want.

Do you work from home a lot now OP? I find that doesn’t help the feeling of ‘meh’, it’s not a healthy way to live.

I don't feel any different to how I did before lockdown, or even during lockdown. However, it does seem to me that some people have become more impatient, demanding, and unpleasant.

It feels like a long time ago to me, and everyone I know is just back to normal life.

Life feels back to normal. Lockdown for me was challenging working in the NHS and I was most definitely heading for burn out so very grateful that life returned to normality for me personally

It's not changed me at all, I can barely remember it now

Nothing really bad happened to me over covid, and there was some benefit for me to slowing down a bit because I realized I was too busy. It also facilitated a major move my family made which I think has overall been positive.

I do in a way feel less happy about people. I was really shocked at some of the behavior of people, and the way the state, and "experts", behaved.

But I think the thing that really shook me most was the way the elderly were locked into homes and not allowed to see anyone or go out, which I consider a basic human right violation. And people did this thinking it was for the benefit of the people they locked up. It changed the way I feel about people, like society is not actually a good, but dangerous.

I still have colleagues at work who are masking, and I find myself increasingly impatient with them, or people who constantly worrying about people testing, or coming in and asking to have their vaccination cards updated (the government has not announced that these are no longer necessary, even though they aren't and no one is supposed to ask for them.) I am generally pretty laid back, and I don't think I would feel as inclined to be as snippy as I do now.

Not everyone's experiences were the same, so I think it's natural that many people feel fundamentally changed by it.

I am a lone parent. I also got ill and have ended up chronically ill after covid. Mentally, I thought I did ok but it changed how I feel about people. I hardened too.

I can do without people because I realised that utlimately I am alone. I don't have close family and friends I can rely on. I watched everyone bubble while I was still alone with my autistic child. Now I'm too poorly to socialise so I just feel like I carried on being in lockdown in some ways. The joy disappeared for me. I no longer look forward to things. It's not depression. It's adjustment to my illness and grief. I've been grieving since then.

I lost my relationship in the lockdown and was heartbroken. I didn't manage to see my family much for a long time and then my parent died suddenly this year. I think I only saw him twice since covid.

First my boyfriend, then my family relationships, then my old life and health and now my parent.

There's such a lack of empathy around. It's been as divisive an experience for the country as Brexit. I think so many relationships have suffered.

I suppose I was quite lucky in that my day-to-day Normal Life was at home anyway, so it just meant that both sons were working in their bedrooms (one 6th-form, one home from university) and we didn't stroll to Tesco's every day. Oh, and the internet was suddenly a lot busier

We all made sure we got out daily (H went cycling on the empty roads, the rest of us walked down the footpath to the fields) and our karate association put on a few online classes.

Following H's redundancy and me still not having found a job we were already living off savings, so lockdown just meant that lasted a bit longer than it would have done otherwise.

My main gripe was that our evening hobby activities were put on hold. My voice was in a terrible state when choir eventually started again - not only had my range shrunk to its smallest ever, but there was this weird bubbling noise (which apparently nobody else could hear, fortunately). It's only just starting to show signs of getting back to its 2019 state.

And maybe I'm just really unobservant, but I haven't noticed people being more unpleasant to each other than before.

For all the why are you thinking about it comments I can understand why the OP is thinking about it now with the inquiry on the news all week. Seeing Dominic Cummings try again to justify his eye test took me right back to that Bank Holiday Monday when he was saying the same shit in the rose garden

On your question the experience of lockdown did make me more reflective and focus on the things that are important to me. Would definitely say I have stepped away from some friendships since that time, I have moved house and got a new job. I think I was stuck in a little bit of a rut, especially job wise, before covid but to me lockdown was a little bit of a pause on normal life and it came at a great time for me

And before it is said I know that people had a horrible time and I am not saying it was awful, I am just giving my experience and I also did have my low points

Talking to my therapist helps and I think it could help you, OP. You sound depressed actually. It also hit us at a really tough time professionally also with young children and I don't think my career will recover so I'm coming to terms with that.

I know what you mean OP.

Not wanting to debate whether or not we needed a lockdown, but I found lockdowns depressing and isolating.

Afterwards I felt like the shine and sparkle of life had been taken away. It was hard to plan and look forward to things. It seemed pointless to look forward to anything. I always felt it was pointless to arrange anything fun. Everything felt so frustrating and out of my control.

People have changed and family relationships have changed - but not for the better. Lots of people have become reclusive.

The mundane part of life just seems so much more of an effort and a bit thankless to be honest.

It's much better now but I don't think it's wrong to acknowledge the impact it had some of us.

I know people who loved it so.....

I don't feel any different. Covid times feels like a lifetime ago and a blur.

@Wellyrambles

"Thank fuck not everyone was as selfish and arrogant as you"

"Of course, lockdown had its negative effects, but the alternative would have been more horrific."

+++

The alternative may have been more horrific or it may have been the same or may have been slightly worse. The fact is that there is no way of ever knowing because there was a lockdown.

Equally it could be argued that the lockdowns were selfish by saving the lives of the predominantly elderly at the cost of the economic prosperity of the many and children's life chances.

during Covid

I never give it a second thought, life didn't change for me, l still had to go out to work everyday, as did eldest son, and youngest was HE anyway. So it didn't impact our routine. I was used to meeting up with friends and going for a walk, we did that before. I don't tend to go out much in evening through choice.
What l have gleaned from this is that it's affected the people worse who hadn't really been through much beforehand. I lost my husband before Covid so already had to totally readapt to a permanently different way of life, where as changes during vivid were only temporary.

I don't even think about it anymore. Wasn't the worst time in my life.

Obviously I dont know everything about people I know but I've not had any conversations with anyone that suggests they have changed, I dont feel any different in myself although I do find some of the changes not to my liking but my life isn't too different to what it was before

Feels like such a long time ago to me

Lockdown didn't bother me. I'm disabled and don't get out much anyway, so it was just another day to me; no difference to my usual life and routine. I think it's just age that's making me care less about what others think etc.

I have noticed, though, when I do get out, that people seem much less patient with others. I've seen people be quite snippy, even rude, with cashiers, waiting staff and fellow customers/patrons etc. I've even been all but pushed out of the way with shopping trollies.

I think this is somewhat dramatic. Brexit has had a far bigger impact on the economy than lockdown and I hardly think the life chances of most children have been affected at all, although I do acknowledge that those in abusive or neglectful homes should never have been abandoned in the way that they were. I don’t actually know anyone negatively impacted, in fact a large number of friends have reassessed their lives and made changes for the better. Personally I had a shit lockdown as both dh and I were stressed wfh in essential industries and I feel our own dc were pretty much left to their own devices far more than they should have been. There was no lazing in the sun for us, more is the pity. But we all made the best of it and we’re fine. I can’t understand why most people, those who didn’t lose loved ones or fall ill themselves, are still dwelling on what was essentially a blip.

I feel totally different. I didn’t agree with lockdowns and I didn’t agree with being jabbed with some crap that hadn’t even been tested for 6 months.

I have no interest in the bulk of society that went along with it. None at all.

It was weird at the time but feels like a distant memory now tbh.

It changed me too. I miss the carefree spontaniety of life.It feels like something in me is missing and I cannot find it to get it back.

One thing I noticed post-lockdown, and I'm not on my own here, was relief when social occasions were cancelled, and not for fear of contracting COVID, just being used to and fairly content with staying at home. This was evident in DD's mid-20s friends, not just the 50-70s I associate with. People would ruefully own up to it and laugh.

It's changed, and back to normal as far as I can see.

This is Melbourne, and COVID is on the rise again.

Lockdown and covid does feel like a long time ago but as a country we are still adjusting to significant changes in our way of life. Lots of things have changed, for example, access to doctors and dentists, cash being phased out, lots of shops closing down, less spontaneity.

It has significant impact on the communication and behaviours of young children, especially in the last two preschool cohorts.

It was an indirect factor in my mum's death this year - the impact of not seeing her family and having to isolate had a significant role in her deteriorating over her last few years.

I've had some quite significant stress factors - a parent with cancer, a parent who died and dealing with helping my teenagers and young adult children. Cost of living rises due to the covid period mean my young adult child is unable to move out of home. The one positive of the year is that I was able to travel abroad, something I was scared might never happen again when we were in the midst of lockdowns.