To not be over what happened to me during covid/lockdowns

[ifyougochasingrabbits]

Just a few of the things I went through

Losing my cleaning business i had built up over years overnight due to everyone cancelling us

Being humiliated by the headteacher at DC school shouting at me in front of other parents because I refused to wear a mask outside . My little girl being made to start school late and finish late because I was unable to wear a mask to collect her (school run was all outside I may add and I had no problem wearing masks in shops etc but I drew the line at in the fresh air outside)

watching thousands of pounds of income disappear at an alarming rate. while wondering if we’d still have jobs and be able to keep the house we’d worked our arses off for for years to buy. Going through six months of trauma with H furloughed and depressed because his work could not guarantee he'd still have a job at the end of it. He was on half pay as furlough was only paid up to about 30k salary iirc and if you were on more it was employers discretion to pay the full salary which his work didn't. He was even applying for jobs at supermarkets and delivery driving etc and getting no where despite having a high level job at a major house builder.

Watching selfish morons stockpiling at the very beginning

“Friends” dumping me, one Cos I dared voice out loud that I wasn’t personally scared of covid and was struggling with restrictions and did not agree with them.

Having to deal with the fact that many of my (remaining) friends had views I completely don’t agree with and accepting they probably feel same about me.
And having to cope with the fact they supported restrictions that were destroying our lives and mental health

Having my business absolutely trashed all over social media and being called a dirty bitch and worse by local people. Fake bad reviews etc. The “reason” was they took exception to me saying on a local page post that I didn't believe in masks in school (this was due to my kids really struggling with them) My 14 year old said he agreed and some of them then found him on fb and messaged him insulted his looks and called him stupid and a fucking moron etc. This was actual grown adults.

a random person inboxed me on Facebook due to seeing my business ad and threatened to "smash my face in" because she thinks i was “endangering lives” by working

My neighbour reporting us to the police for having an illegal gathering. This "illegal gathering" was me, my H and our 3 dc having a bbq in the garden. Needless to say we all live together

Being put on medication for panic attacks and anxiety in fact I minimised it to the gp. I was actually suicidal and the only reason I am still here is because of my kids and the fact my husband and parents had the same views as me. But I would secretly hope to die in my sleep and almost every day I would wake up and cry because I was still here.

Watching my 3 Kids completely fall apart due to schools being closed. While not only having to deal with seeing posts all over fb about how well other kids were doing and coping doing all their work, managing great. And knowing some people I care about actually wanted schools shut. One of my kids is still very unwell mentally and it all started with lockdowns

Oh and to add final insult to injury, in November 2021 I had to pay £5700 (which was part credit card and part all of our savings) privately for an operation that should have been freely available on the nhs. But cos covid they could not give me a date and I was getting more and more poorly and could not wait.

I am still angry and maybe I should get over it. But I can't. And There's probably more but these are the stand out moments. I'm doing okay now and I have a new business and I'm doing well, H has a new job as he could not trust his old place after covid. but I've been very low again recently with the anniversary of it all

That will have been because there are treatments available for cancer, and this was a worldwide pandemic involving a new virus that science knew virtually nothing about, and it was killing people in millions.

I think some of you are deliberately being obtuse because it makes you seem clever and edgy. Newsflash - it doesn't. Victims are still dying but you conveniently ignore that because it doesn't fit in your arrogant narrative.

Why?

What am I missing?

Sorry @ilovesooty

I had to stop commenting anywhere on social media, because the stupidity, selfishness and arrogance of people like this was affecting my mental health.

The stupidity of thinking they know better than science and health experts, the selfishness of refusing to help to protect all of the community via their ill-informed, uneducated, stubborn refusal to just for fucking once do as you were told, and the arrogance of then berating people who did comply!!

It's awful that businesses were ruined but it wasn't the government that was responsible for it, but Covid. They would have been ruined without lockdown and with no support at all. Many businesses were able to be resilient and adapt.

History will no doubt show the mismanagement involved at the level of the snivelling, contemptuous people who were unfortunately running the country - but I fail to see what else was to be done other than follow the advice given by experts in their respective according to the knowledge available at the time.

Yes OP if you had been my friend pre-Covid, I wouldn't have thought much of your attitude and I couldn't have continued the friendship. Fortunately my friends aren't selfish and ignorant, and have a strong social conscience.

You’re right, I was. I think it may have gone over jen’s head though. Probably too busy thinking up insults

The interesting thing is that the government didn't bother following their own rules. If they were necessary for health, why didn't they?

Exactly.
But also a lot of the "rules" people are referencing here weren't really rules at all, in fact it's obvious people missed a lot of the nuance in the discussions around guidance and just jumped on any indication of a rule with enthusiasm. And then policed the behaviour of others as well without ever stopping to think

Yep. My neighbour has Covid (or rather a positive test) for the umpteenth time. The lack of questioning is scary.

Indeed!

They were telling us all to be scared whilst being distinctly unafraid themselves. Strange

A lot of them did have Covid notably the chief clown himself. Maybe none of them had underlying health issues? Like Trump, they'd be front of the queue for treatment too, don't fool yourself.

Yes, and a lot of the “DONT BREAK THE RULES” loons were very misguided on what the rules actually were.

I remember posting on the family group that I was taking the kids for an all day walk some time in about May 2020 when the weather was glorious. SIL proceeded to argue with me that I was only allowed out for an hour. I wasn’t. But some numpty politician had suggested that on the news - and the IQ level of people, and their short attention spans, means they heard it as “The law says 1 hour max”! SIL - who called the police on half her village - told me til she was blue on the face that I was wrong 😂

I’d be amazed if half those bloated pasty buffoons didn’t have underlying health issues.

Just to be clear. We are calling the OP selfish and ignorant and without a social conscience because she didn’t see the point in wearing a mask outside? What science was she ignoring? How was she harming people?

And yes the government knew full well what they were doing: ramp up the fear when you want us to buy in to lockdown, then all of a sudden pay us to eat out because the economy is in trouble..I mean which is it?

The fact that people blindly followed rules that weren’t based on science is bizarre. Why weren’t more people questioning this? It’s quite worrying how we were brain washed with fear propaganda. And I see for some they still are..

YANBU biggest scam going was rona. People are still being brainwashed, very sad to see

Exactly.

I knew people who literally timed their walks and rushed home when it got close to an hour. . We spent whole glorious afternoons on long stretches of empty beach. Far better for the children.

Some of the house owners on the road near the beach put up awful aggressive posters trying to discourage people from going to the beach. So I ripped them down each time we went .

I supported lockdowns, I supported masks inside. (Albeit the way most people wore them they were of limited efficacy and more symbolic). I respected tracing and isolation.

But there was a whole raft of silliness that swirled around the basic sensible rules, and it's mad people still won't discuss this without calling people "COVID deniers".

Just to be clear. We are calling the OP selfish and ignorant and without a social conscience because she didn’t see the point in wearing a mask outside? What science was she ignoring? How was she harming people?

THAT'S what you got from this? The mind boggles.

She's selfish and ignorant because whether masks outside was a good idea or not, that was the school rule in place. OP decided her ideas were better, and forced the school to have later drop offs and pick ups for kid, because she refused to put one on for 5 minutes. She chose to inconvenience everyone, because she knew better.
She also encouraged said child to rip off barrier tape on playgrounds and mouth off about covid rules, and OP ranted on social media about covid rules and how she didn';t believe in them.

Not that there is much point explaining this to you, someone using the same conspiracy nut script "brainwashing" "fearmongering" " no science". You seem just as bad, defending her on the wrong charges together.

People were just doing their best to get by in a difficult sitiuation, where things were unknown and constantly changing. Idiots like the OP made everything harder for everyone. They definitely harmed people.

Yes and it was interesting that it was often the same people who most vigorously enforced even the mere hint of guidance who bounced straight back into chain restaurants when "eat out to help out" was announced.

Just to be clear. We are calling the OP selfish and ignorant and without a social conscience because she didn’t see the point in wearing a mask outside? What science was she ignoring? How was she harming people?
I love how you started that nonsense with "Just to be clear" 😂

And yes the government knew full well what they were doing: ramp up the fear when you want us to buy in to lockdown, then all of a sudden pay us to eat out because the economy is in trouble..I mean which is it?

Yes!

The mass gaslighting that people accepted terrified me far more than any virus. Even when I was very ill from COVID.

Half of the stuff you mentioned was your own doing and you didn't do yourself any favours, but the other half is awful and it's totally crap you had to go through all that.

One of the things that infuriated me was the cap on the furlough, if you had someone who was a higher earner (not rich, just higher) then you were paid considerably less than the furlough, it's not like the mortgage halfed or your bills halfed. People were not very understanding of this at all. Directors of small ltd companies who didn't run payroll (as they don't have to) were also treated dreadfully. I am an accountant and it was devastating to not be able to help all our clients. I actually administered the furlough scheme for 20 clients free of charge for the full time it was in place as i felt so shit for them all.

Why weren’t more people questioning this?

Some of us did. We got abuse for it. As did the OP.

Anyone who thinks the self employed scheme during covid was reasonable clearly doesn't have any understanding of how it was calculated. Luckily I am employed but to see how my clients were affected was awful.

No people like YOU - insulting, name calling anyone different - is what made it hard and why so many people have MH issues now. Total lunacy around ridiculous and nonsensical rule following, and shouting anyone down who does live life the way you do.

A relative had just started a dog grooming business six months earlier that was booming, then she suddenly couldn’t work and she got absolutely fuck all. Disgraceful!

It was, people seem to think that self employed people all got 80% of their income, far from it. Directors of small Ltd companies got absolutely nothing. One of my self employed clients had invested in her business not long before using her very young late DHs insurance money who she had lost not long before also. That was taken into account as her savings and she got nothing. This happened to many people.