Now the COVID pandemic is gone, What are your worst, or best, memories?

[Alondra]

I was talking to my eldest son today and we somehow ended up talking about the worst moments we lived trough Covid. For me, the worst was living in Australia with DH and our two youngest, while he was in Madrid. I was beside myself with worry knowing we couldn't do anything. Zoom helped.....but only for a short while. I've never had as many sleepless nights as I had then.

For my eldest, being in a complete lockdown in a 60 square metre apartment without us or knowing what the future would be, was his worst. He did mention as a positive that he now knows most of his neighbours and is close friends with several, something it wouldn't have happened before lockdowns. :)

From the distance now, what are the things you won't forget, good or bad?

Loved the peace and quiet.
I am lucky, I really didn’t have any issues with lockdown.

Worst - watching the psychological effect of no contact with other children for 3 months on my just-turned-5yo. For me personally - it affected some friendships and both have never been the same since.

And to think those scum in the government were living it up with parties while civilians suffered in various ways, especially those who said their goodbyes to critically ill loved ones via Zoom.

I was in London the day that Canary Wharf had their first case, and we all abandoned the meeting and went home.

On the train home it was silent apart from the bloke next to me. No phone calls apart from his. Nobody eating, nobody drinking, nobody talking to each other, just him. It was the most weird train journey ever.

My best memories was sowing loads of tomato and pepper seeds, and putting the plants outside on the wall for people to take home. I gave away hundreds. We lived in a little village with a canal so we had people doing their daily walks past the house and round to the canal and back. The tray was out there for weeks and I refilled it every day. Then later on, I put all my spare veg out and people took that away - tomatoes and courgettes mainly.

Not being able to give my children birthday parties.

Watching the police bully a woman who tried to do exactly that

The grass up culture that was encouraged

I hated it and it seems to have damaged people, particularly children

Worst: a close relative dying of covid alone in hospital.

Best: the first lockdown when the weather was good and the schools hadn’t figured out online lessons yet. So much un disturbed time with the dc and they really benefitted too.

I loved being isolated and no one coming to the house. I need a lot of space

I gave birth to my 4th child a week into lockdown - it was great, no noisy visitors on the ward, all the new mums bonded and helped each other - it was a much better experience than when I had my other 3.

The weather was great, we were out all day playing in the sun, having picnics, going for walks.

I loved the peace and quiet! I had the baby and 3 older kids so the older ones had each other to play with.

To be honest there wasn’t a lot I didn’t like about it!!!!!

I was very fortunate tho as I appreciate not everyone had the space we have!

Worst - the people that died. DH lost a good friend, I lost a colleague.

Best - I got sober. I didn’t realise I had a drink problem until the first lockdown. I stopped drinking within a week of lockdown when I realised where my drinking was going and haven’t touched a drop in 4 years. It’s been life changing.

Best was taking time to stop rushing and notice Spring in the UK unfold. Plus working from home.

Worst has been longer to appear, but it is health issues not getting prompt treatment due to the legacy of the impact on the NHS. Long Covid. The greed of those issued PPE contracts.

Very insensitive post tbh when millions of people passed away!

I’m a nurse. I was “in work” all the way through, although I was lucky enough not to be deployed to ICU etc. I remember the absolute horror in the run up though. It was terrifying watching the reports from Italy, like watching a juggernaut coming towards you in slow motion.

I was living alone, and my mental health was definitely a bit awry. I used to have the compulsive thought “I want to go home” even when I was sat on my own couch. However my lovely colleagues were a godsend, as were my Zoom pub quizzes with friends that we would take turns theming every week, and my family for making me prop my phone up to “have dinner” with them every night.

Such a strange time, I think I had it relatively easy, and have definitely experienced lockdown nostalgia, but it was so difficult.

The whole pandemic deeply affected my
teens..

It was an awful time for them..they missed so much and 2 of them have never really recovered. One developed an eating disorder which was hell to deal with in lockdown, on our own with only on line support.
The other lost all his friendships and is still isolated now and really struggles socially.
They missed 2 years of their lives, felt unwanted and overlooked by society and especially the government, who opened pubs before schools.
I am beyond angry still on their behalf.

I hated not being able to visit my mum in her care home. I hated my grown up children not being allowed to visit. I hated all the bloody going for a walk bollocks. I hated having to go to work, while all the WFH people were spouting the stay the fuck at home shit and berating anyone who they saw out and about.

best was all dc coming home

also made for pretty good driving, to work and back, also to pick up dd's things she had left at university

worst was worrying about all my dc and my family, watching the news, the anxiety

And to think those scum in the government were living it up with parties while civilians suffered in various ways, especially those who said their goodbyes to critically ill loved ones via Zoom.

Some governments behaved appallingly. The Madrid autonomous government let thousands of elderly people in residences die by not providing any type of health assistance. It was appalling.

I have 2 worsts.

Watching my mother in law die (not of covid) and having to have a socially distanced funeral and crying in the crematorium with a mask on. Not being able to hug my in laws in public outside the crem.

Trying to work from home, look after a just turned 3 year old and homeschool a just turned 7 year old (whose party we had to cancel and she spent her birthday in lockdown). It was hell. When they announced the lockdown I just cried and cried and cried. We were stuck in a house with awful neighbours who would bang on the wall if one of my kids had a tantrum. Didn’t know how we would cope all being at home 24/7.

The goalposts constantly being moved, so there was no end in sight. The very real fear that this would all be permanent.
”reviewed in three weeks.”
“reviewed in another three weeks.”
”we can turn this virus around in twelve weeks.”
“This is the new normal.”
”we need to hit the pause button, and squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze the brakes on reopening.”
”normalish by Christmas”.
”significant normality by Easter.”
”rolling lockdowns every winter.”
”just until the over 70s are vaccinated.”
”just until the over 50s are vaccinated.”
“Just until all adults are vaccinated.”
”irreversible roadmap to freedom in June.”
”I’ve changed my mind, it’s July”.

At no point did they say “we appreciate that lockdowns are causing massive damage, and we are very sorry for causing this. We will endeavour to keep lockdowns as short as possible. We regret succumbing to the fear.”

The worst is all the people who passed away, of course.
The best was the move to working from home, spending so much quality time with my partner, having so much more time to focus on our health and wellbeing - we ate healthily, worked out, lost weight. We came out of lockdown physically and mentally so much healthier and it's altered how we live our lives for the better, as we will never go back to how things were pre-pandemic.

The worst part was the anxiety and fear.
The best part was the peace and quiet. DD was one of the kids who thrived in lockdown and hugely benefitted from a prolonged break from school.
I've embraced a gentler pace of life and haven't really gone back.

Worst - the honest fear of what might come in the early days. We had a family 80th Birthday party cancelled in April 2020 and I wondered how many of us would still be there when it went ahead.

Best- lockdown days off with my toddler. Just pottering in the garden and playing in the sun. The birdsong.

Not a time we are likely to forget. DH and I, plus 2 adult sons all at home, all getting on fine, lots of dog walking between us all. DH looking after neighbours, getting orders for food etc., Then one day, he had bad chest pains, called ambulance who came within minutes, recommended that he go to hospital to get checked over and have blood tests. On the way to hospital he had a mild heart attack. He spent 5 days in one hospital, waiting to be sent to another hospital for a triple bypass operation. I took some things in for him, I will never forget how eerie the hospital was, major clinics in darkness, staff talking in huddles, in corners, lots of red tape and only certain lifts going to certain floors. I left his stuff at reception, he was waiting the other side of the door, obviously wasn’t allowed to see him. He was sent to another hospital and received his operation 5 days later. Everything after was so strange, phone call check ups, no rehab, just a pack sent out. I’m so glad I had my 2 sons at home, they got me through it. I cannot express my thanks enough for the great care he received in extremely difficult circumstances, he’s got lots of video’s of hospital staff and has popped into the ward he was in since to thank them personally.

Worst - Having my operation cancelled right at the last moment and sent home, then waiting five months to get back in for it and a further three ops to follow.

Best - I spent a lot of time in my garden as the weather was so good, it helped a lot being able to go outside and the garden was a riot of colour, such a boost when unable to go anywhere or see anyone.

The worst for me personally wasn't that bad in the grand scheme. I had some anxiety and fear, terrified of bringing death to loved ones, but it never happened, we were fortunate to all survive it. I lost a friend as she wanted to speak on the phone all the time whereas I was happy to not have to socialise so much. I miss her, but her need should never have trumped mine.

The best bits for me were the weather of the first lock down, the pace and quiet, the perspective it gave that helped me gain insight that led to my autism diagnosis, that it led to the flexible working patterns.

I hate that something as specific as a killer pandemic led to such varying experiences.

Best was deciding to leave my job (big public service organisation) who were behaving as if they knew best and covid was a fuss over nothing and no more than a cold.
Worst my dad died and we could only have a small funeral. He’d have loved a big production 🤣

I loved the traffic free roads! I was driving across the country every other week and it was so quick, at least 30 minutes quicker than a quiet normal day, and stopping off for food everyone was so friendly partly because everyone travelling had a good reason, mostly like me for work.

Disliked not seeing the kids as much (lockdown one was ok, by 2 they stayed at university)