Anyone else just think it’s great that life is back to “normal”?

[curiousitygotthebetterofme]

After two years of covid restrictions, I mean.

Was just watching Glastonbury and looking at the big crowds of people there, it’s hard to believe we have had so many restrictions over the last two years.

This time in 2020 and even this time last year I never thought we’d get back to this level of normality, well at least not for an extremely long time so I just think it’s wonderful to see everyone back together and enjoying themselves again

Funny this concern wasn’t shown on the jubilee weekend.

I think a lot of this is due to the godawful government we have. Johnson isn't interested in improving things for the future, he just wants to take what he can get now. Of course we need significant investment in public health, but that is not going to come from a Tory government.

@Summertwilight numbers spiked after Jubilee weekend

Of course they did. They will do, it’s a virus, it’s what happens.

So we should have cancelled the jubilee right? And Glastonbury? Is that honestly what people want?

I'm sorry that you are high risk. You would, however, be high risk of everything, not just Covid. And you have not got Covid due to people thinking everything is back to normal. You have got Covid because you came into contact with a virus. You cannot blame people who are not high risk for living their lives. Covid is not the only thing, or even the scariest thing out there. "Normal" is that people get on with their lives and have to deal with all the viruses, bacteria and other risks that most people ignore all the time. People who are at such high risk from normal life can never ignore those risk, even before Covid. It's sad that people have such limitations, but it isn't anyone's fault. Stop trying to guilt people into living like you want them to.

I’m with you OP, there was a time during the first lockdowns where I couldn’t see how gigs and music festivals would ever happen again. I love seeing everyone at Glastonbury having the time of their lives! I’ve been to 4, 2 of which were very wet so I’m always jealous of everyone there when the weather is good.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t do things, but after numbers spiked at the Jubilee maybe some people are looking at Glastonbury slightly differently

@Jalisco there is another thread where a young baby was put at risk by GPs who had knowingly been in contact with COVID. I would be blaming the GPs there not the virus. In the same way, on another thread a child was very poorly after another family knowingly brought them into contact with chicken pox. That is down to the family not the virus.

I agree with this fully.

It was October 2020 to July 2021 that did the damage to me. Constant uncertainty. When life was turned back on through 2021 it was hard to make plans, anticipate and feel excitement in case thd situation changed. This time last year I was emotionally numb, and it didn't really wear off until about August and there seems to be a delayed reaction in public behaviour. Life's routines have now been stable since last autumn, but it's still only just getting back to normal with the return of annual events. Over two years of not having "extras" in the diary (due to planning lead time/ lack of confidence because of fear of illness or isolation- it's a lot longer than the actual restrictions in reality) and any thing extra feels like a chore. I really hope that passes and I can find myself again. I'm boring and solitary now and that's not me and it's hard to stimulate the energy to do it because it was all used up in 2020/21 when my life was turned off.

On a wider scale, the damage to community/ social groups is vast and slow to heal. Universities lost their experienced students to pass on the baton with societies. The chains of succession on committees has been broken. Volunteers and members lost. People were prohibited from being communities for long enough that routines were broken. Many groups have been lost. I was talking to an organiser at a large Scouting event recently and they haven't had the young adults getting the experience to take on new roles. Many of the staff members were going about their business with baby carriers because their personal lives moved on, and there's no one to step into that gap normally. It's either bring baby or lose the event... then the chain of other events.

Things will broadly heal with normality and time, but we haven't pinged back into 2019 because we couldn't actually freeze life for two years and that has a toll.

Seeing things like Glastonbury being normal feeds my spirit back up again after being starved. I've been trying to get my normal back, but that takes others/ organisations to be ready too and its only just coming together.

It is nice that normality has returned in some ways. However I don't think we can ignore the impact on the health service and the many thousands and thousands of people who have had treatment delayed and the subsequent back-log, or the psychological impact of those who lost loved ones in traumatic circumstances, or the psychological impact of lockdowns, or the huge impact it has had on house prices, or the lack of rail and airport/airline staff, or our national debt.

It will be a while until things are truly normal beyond being able to socialise.

I am also not complacent about the fact that things could become bad again.

Yes so many went on about the new normal and ‘I’m afraid life will never be like it was in 2019 again’ that I feel so grateful and appreciative to be going to the theatre, cinema, restaurants and so on, everything feels so normal and good at the moment

Things could very quickly become inconvenient if, like the past has shown, people are off sick so wards aren’t staffed, cows not milked, lorries not driven and shelves not stocked. It’s ok saying it’s a mild illness, but if it’s enough to have people off sick we all know what happens.
I’m all for people enjoying themselves and boosting the economy, but we need to keep in mind what could happen.

I'm very grateful life is back to normal too, me and my husband have both had covid recently after avoiding it all this time after being at a party but I don't regret going and certainly won't be going back to lockdown/mask wearing etc

I’m delighted. I’m immunocompromised and had to shield, and I’m so glad that I can enjoy what life I have. I worry about covid, but I worry about chickenpox, norovirus, RSV and lots of other viruses/diseases that are around.

I’ve got DS’ sports day tomorrow and I can’t wait.

But that was never the issue, the issue was always about protecting public services and now that we have vaccines, the impact on public services has reduced greatly.

No government ever cared that people would get sick, the focus was on keeping society running. Which it is now.

It does it’s great, it’s really busy here too everywhere seems filled with people enjoying it

I’m just going to say it - I think that’s what a lot of people hate. They don’t care about covid particularly, they just hate it when others are going about a normal life and enjoying it. Especially young people.

We have finally been on a plane and got three more holidays abroad booked, third wedding this year in a few weeks, been to concerts, a festival, parties, days out. We both are very sociable. Life is for living while you can.
Lockdown was a mistake because certain people enjoyed it too much and then decided that they suddenly had power over others to try and make people feel guilty for wanting to do normal enjoyable things. They continue to use covid try to convince people that they are spreading it around and killing people, as seen on this thread.
It will never be over for them.
Covid was by far the best thing that's ever happened to them.

I agree to an extent. But Covid infection numbers are sky high again and we’re on our third wave of Omicron this year. What slightly concerns me is the long term impact of repeated infections on us all, I know people (children too) on their third or fourth bout of it and others with health issues they didn’t have before 2020 and Covid such as fatigue, shortness of breath, thinning hair etc. How his will look in a year or two is anyone’s guess.

I also think the Monkeypox outbreak has serious potential to become problematic in terms of social distancing over the coming weeks/ months.

I'm glad. I had surgery that I needed. I can walk through whichever door I want and in whichever direction I want, as that never made any difference to an airbourne disease anyhoo.

I'm sorry people are getting ill, but life can't just stop forever because nature has come up with a new disease to attack us.

Yes totally agree OP, loving going about my life without even thinking about Covid, going abroad, going to big weddings, hugging my parents, all normal stuff.

The only thing I wish is that people had taken more of a lesson from Covid that it’s good practice not to come to things when you aren’t well. No one wants your germs regardless of what it is. I was hopeful people would be better at taking sick days, cancelling if they were unwell etc. but I am seeing a lot of people turn up to stuff an announce they have a stinking cold, their DC have norovirus etc and I’m just a bit 🙅🏼‍♀️🙅🏼‍♀️🙅🏼‍♀️

Lots of people didn't take part - despite the hype in the press

I'm not sure. I've learned a lot I hope. Mostly about preparing for the worst and then if anything better happens that is a bonus!

I don't think I am as carefree as before covid. But then maybe I am less prepared to put up with crap.

Right now I'm not looking forward to the teacher's strike - as my DD already one teacher down at college due to recruitment crisis and all those 'study weeks' they keep slotting in because they are short staffed - feel like a rerun of home schooling to me.

in the jubilee i mean

I think it’s brilliant that things are back to normal
Am loving being back to normal,getting out and about,going on holiday
Yesterday went into town shopping,had lunch with a friend and then out at night with DH to a bbq

One of the things that stressed me out the most during the pandemic was all the doomongers saying that we would never get back to normal,all the stuff about the new normal

Has been great to see how quickly we have got back to enjoying life

Yes. It's now proven that lockdowns were pointless & achieved nothing. I stuck to the bare legal minimum, but I have been "back to normal" for a pretty long time. Covid is endemic, so we will all catch it multiple times but that's absolutely fine, and most of us won't know as there is no need to test. The minority of people who still want to fuss about it (which seems to be a form of mass hysteria or even hypochondria) are welcome to do so but the rest of the population shouldn't have to go along with those fears. Most of all, we need to just let the young get their lives back - and I say that as a very boring old person!