To feel a bit sad lockdown is ending but we have no one to see?

[wellwell12]

Everyone is talking about their plans to see family this weekend in gardens etc and I've realised we won't be seeing anyone. Our family is far away. We have lots of friends but not any real close ones. We have one dd ( wanted more but didn't happen). I feel quite sad as I am seeing pictures of lots of kids having egg hunts on social media. I think I need to make more effort for my daughters sake to try and make more close friends to replace the lack of family nearby

Anyone else feel like this?

I do! I’m happy that other people have families and friends they can see but all their excitement does highlight our lack of anyone to see.

Same here. We have no family nearby . We have some local friends but they are parents of our children’s friends, so see them on the school run anyway. I was talking to
My husband about this just yesterday. In a way it is good, because lockdown has not really been noticeable , in that our children have not really ‘missed’ family that much, as we only see them a few times a year. But then realise how nice it must be for other’s who have people they are close to.

I moved back to the UK after more than 20 years abroad during covid, my mum isn't too far away but apart from that it's just me and my 20 month daughter. Some days we go to the supermarket and if the weather is nice we go to the park to see people. Things won't change much when lock down is lifted. I'm looking forward to when toddler groups start so that we can both have some more interactions, at least that is my hope.

I've just been out in the garden hiding clues for 12 year old DD, it doesn't have to be a big public / social thing.

Her (older) siblings weren't interested so I have hidden a few clues with an egg at the end for her

I don't have any family near by. My friends are fine and I have met up with them outside this past week. But not meeting up with anyone on Easter - they are with their own families. I'm fine with that - totally happy just me and my kids.
If you feel the lack though, yes you do have to make an effort.

I do and I don't. I've family near and far, but they're all a bit rubbish and I'm low contact for my sanity. I think it's sad.

I tend to make transient friends. I like people, find them interesting and fun, want to hang out with them. And then I...don't. Whether they start taking the piss, have horrible beliefs deep down, turn into emotional vampires or start messing me around with cancellations because "Amber's so laid back, she won't mind".

One person even said how lovely it was that they didn't have to invent an excuse, they could just say the truth that they couldn't be bothered and I'm fine with it. Except I'm not.

5 people have contacted me once since lockdown started. I've heard nothing from the rest. I've got a lot on my plate, which I don't want to talk about. I've never been one for sharing woes. I can't be doing with anyone else's drama right now.

So I've a decision to make. Do I make an effort to renew old acquaintances, with all the effort that involves? Or do I quietly slip out of everybody's lives, get on with being me and doing what I need to do? I sometimes think I like the idea of friends more than the reality. I think that's sad too.

I feel like that, everybody has been talking about their plans but I only have three living relatives including my DC. I probably won't speak to another adult for ages.

This is me! I have few family members (and they all live miles away. A lovely group of friends online but few I can rely on locally. Few opportunities to hang out. Ive only had 3-4 face to face chats (of any length) in about 3 months.

Desperately want new friends but not entirely sure atm how to go about it.

Yep. Exactly this. Seeing lots of social media get togethers but we don’t have the family or friends that others seem to have. I feel sad for my kids

Feeling lonely is exacerbated by social media. I wish we had living family in this country but we don’t, and it’s hard. My best friend is also in another country, and I seem incapable of being anything other than polite neighbours with people nearby. I’m very lucky to have my husband, am quite introverted too, but I wish I had someone for the children’s sake.

Yep. Same here - been alone for the past year & nothings changing in the near future. Family moved miles away years ago, friends all have their own families etc.

I am very very very fucking used to my own company now!

Yep no one has invited us anywhere, OH doesn’t want to go and see his family (because they’ve all been breaking lockdown rules with each other).

Yeh, same. I see big groups of family and friends out and about and it makes me sad. My closest family are 2 hours away and best friends 200 miles. I have a few friends here and they are lovely, but it's not the big joyful reunion with the (not) nearest and dearest, that's all still a long way off.

I'm amused I'm in this situation, too. I even lost my bubble person (she got a boyfriend, good for her)

It's ok, I feel quite alienated by the controls anyway (which seemingly 90% of people support). I had even less in common with other people than I thought.

Ignore socially media that makes you feel bad about everything!
A small upside of lacknof family commitments is that you can start getting the kids back into the activities that are now open . Ds just started football on Saturdays and ex mil already complaining it will start encroaching on family time!

How old is your daughter? Most of my friends now are ones I have made from going to toddler groups and school. Also I'm lucky that my girls' best friends are sisters and I'm very close now to the mum.

The friend thing is weird when you have children and I have lost friends when their children have fallen out with mine, which makes me think they were never my friend in the first place.

I think friends are generally transient, I do have friends from school and uni but don't see them as much.

Social media can be awful it can give the impression that people are happy etc when they really aren't. I've got better at my looking and no posting when I looked back at a photo which came Uk in my memories and it looks happy but it wasn't really.

my family is also too far away and my dm, who is in my bubble, i see weekly.
my dd is home from university but as lovely as that is, i am not sure it counts.

one of my colleagues now able to see her adult dd, but the rest of my colleagues are not celebrating. we are just not in that position.

Same here. My family live overseas and my ex didn't like meeting up with other families, so we never made friends as a family... Then once it was just me, I did make more friends but realise that as a single mum, people don't tend to invite you over on the weekend as they're all hanging out as a family, and then during the week most work, so it's going for a walk or run together, not family time with kids.

It's a bit sad, really.

easter is family time regardless of the year though.

I understand completely, most of my family are abroad and I've not seen them in ages. I feel almost resentful of friends who complain about not having seen their family anywhere except for a cold walk in the park and I'm like, I've not seen mine at all for over a year....

Same. My family are 100 miles away.

I thought this too. My family are abroad so no idea if we will get to see them again.

DH family are too far away to go for the day.

Friends.....well they seem to have locked themselves inside their houses since last March and too terrified to come out because they haven’t been vaccinated yet.

Billy no-mates here.

@Inthevirtualwaitingroom

easter is family time regardless of the year though.

Not in my family. Never been a Big Deal. I got an egg as a kid and that was it (not complaining - just was the norm). We’ve never had a Big Family Easter Lunch etc.