To think that life just hasn’t been the same ever since covid

Nothing has changed for me.

Perhaps is more to do with your stage of life than Covid related

@Lilifer that’s something I hear about quite often, I don’t know why so many people have become less sociable but I do feel something has fundamentally changed (but can’t explain it!). If I were you, disheartening as it must be, I wouldn’t give up on them just yet.

Before Covid my friends and I used to meet up regularly for coffee, lunch or dinners either in our houses or out in restaurants, now we barely meet up twice a year (and we all live within ten minute drive of each other) it's not a money thing, my two friends are actually a lot better off than me financially, it's just that the urge or need to get together and catch up, offload, vent laugh cry together just has gone - I'm really sad about it, I tried to organise things and then was let down with flaky excuses so much, something which never happened pre Covid, that I have kind of given up now and accepted that's just the way it is

Nope, back to normal and as happy as I was before Covid. The people close to me seem the same. It feels like a long time ago.

I think Covid gets blamed for a lot of things and sometimes those things are just the general crappy bits of life that everybody has to put up with...not really linked to Covid at all.

I have long Covid (it’s been 3.5 years so far) and it affects me so badly that I struggle to work and have had more than 1 year of sick leave and my job is still at risk. I’m alone so I’m the only source of income so I need to work. I’ve spent a fortune on private medical care (nothing was happening on the NHS) to try to get better (I’ve improved but there’s no guarantee that I will ever get any better than I am now) and every day is still a struggle. I’m unrecognisable from the person I was before Covid. My life is unrecognisable.

Definitely agree. We had great lockdown (kids just right age, husband had to work. We haven't lost anybody and weren't affected with loss of income/anything bad happening)
I don't know if it's covid or brexit or wars or COL or shitty politics, but everything seems bleak?
I'm from Eastern Europe originally and each time I go back I see progress happening. New shops, better standards of living etc.
We are stagnating and it feels like our kids won't have much future here when they grow up.
And there is just never any excitement/happiness anywhere. We do lots of things with kids but you just never ever see anyone smiling. And there are much less babies/toddlers at playgrounds.
Almost like joy has been sucked out of everyone? Plus services are now diabolical.

Well I feel like everything closes earlier, people seem to go out less, think WFH is the best thing since sliced bread and you still have to book for things in my local council area; firework display, dump trips and swimming pool (actually that might have finally stopped). Supermarkets that used to stay open 24 hours now close at midnight etc. And this is London.

I feel much happier since Covid as it meant so many lasting changes for the better – WFH flexibility, more money, location flexibility, more time with my kids who were 2yrs old at the time.

There’s an element of guilt to that, because it happened at the expense of such horrible devastation to so many people. I obviously wouldn’t have wished it, but my life has changed for the better since.

Yes. Something was broken in those couple of years and it's never been quite the same since

I can’t really summon up the enthusiasm to care much about anything any more. My concentration level has all but vanished, I watch and read the same things over again because I can’t be bothered with anything new.

Spent most of lockdown living alone in a flat with no outside space, wasn’t allowed to see my friends for ages. Got made redundant from my office job and now wfh permanently which is fine but means I can go days without speaking to anyone in person.

The area I live in used to be clean and tidy and people took pride in it. It’s now dirty and getting run down. The road outside is used as a race track by boy racers at all hours.

I worry about my son’s future. The country has gone to shit and I really hope he goes abroad to live at the earliest opportunity.

I didn’t feel like this pre-lockdown.

Weird - I was literally just thinking this exact same thought as I came across your post op

Which people op? Is it friends or family? Both?

my circle is all back to normal, in fact it seems like a distant weird dream, crazy when you think back on it, which to be honest none of us really do, other than an abstract thing if it comes on the tv or something.

which people do you think are not as happy. Do you mean you?

Conspiracy theory: the world ended in 2020/2021 and we're now all stuck in limbo. Like Lost except there's less polar bears.

I think you might be on to something with the last sentence I think this time of year makes everyone feel a certain way and when spring comes we will all perk up a bit and be out and about more.

I feel as if Covid never happened. I did thoroughly enjoy the lockdowns. Maybe people who had a shit time feel that life changed permanently.

There have been some benefits - working from home, zoom meetings etc - but I think you're right that we're so much more insular and do a lot less socialising in person. Lots of good chain stores went under so my high street has changed massively. We used to have two Outfit stores selling Oasis, DP, Warehouse etc, a Debenhams, Halfords and an Argos - all gone now. City centres feel dead and the last few times I've had lunch out at a restaurant there have been a maximum of 3 occupied tables including mine. And everything is so expensive anyway. But maybe that was the cost of living crisis? It came on so quickly afterwards that it sort of feels like Covid was the dividing line even though they might not be related. But then February is the worst month so maybe I just feel miserable because of that?

I completely agree. On the surface everything seems pretty much back to normal, but nothing has felt right to me since Covid. I can’t really explain it, but it’s as though the world has gone grey when it was once full of colour, the joy and vibrancy has been sucked out somehow. People seem less reliable, less bothered about things too. I am probably not making much sense but everything has felt ‘off’ since then.

Stop looking back into the past and focus on the future. We cannot do anything about the past.

I feel things are different for many reasons I think lockdown opened up a whole new way of communicating and it became the norm. Facetime, teams etc Before covid you had to travel to everything meetings, medical appointments and now there are more options and I don't think that's always a bad thing. I think online shopping also became more popular. Also I think a lot of people realised they like being at home and it's become more acceptable to stay home. I would pick a movie and takeaway at home in pyjamas over most things and I think the world as a whole are more accepting of this as pre covid you would get the whole come on don't be boring let's go out let's do this, let's do that. As an introvert I'm much happier.

I agree with this too.
It seems as though society is breaking down around us and many people think their own wants and needs take precedence over everyone else. The fall in manners and standards is immense.
It worries me too that so many people are losing sight of the fact that democracy means that we, as individuals, may not get what we want in favour of the majority prevailing.

The worry is that it seems to be worldwide

Everything has got a hell of a lot more expensive and the pared back services we got haven't really returned to normal. So I do think life is tougher now than if it had never happened (I also lost my job during it). But on a day to day basis I think I’m the same as before.

Covid put a financial wrecking ball through our business and we are on the brink personally and professionally.
It's very very hard.

If we had our time again, we would have closed our business, but we took loans and tried to keep going and it just went on and on with 3 lockdowns, followed by the cost of living and interest rate rises.

We have changed a lot. We socialise a fraction of what we did, we are just exhausted from the financial pressure.
God just typing it makes me feel depressed.

Agree, people including myself just can't be arsed or enthused about meeting up as much, it's sad.

My life has changed, yes. For the better. Couldn't be happier about it

I think it was covid which here in Wales dragged on and on - then crisis in NHS and Schools - we had family needing NHS and it was just horrifc at times - then cost of living hit just up and up and constant cutting back. Life rummbled on good and bad but background noise is just depressing.

We only been a few city centers in last few years that have felt like before covid with busy streets - everywhere else feels very dead somehow.