To ask how your life changed since 2020?

[IceAndLemonPlease]

Did your life get better or worse since covid happened ?
Mine definitely got worse. Made redundant from a job I was very comfortable in and which I had been in for many years. My colleague passed away at the age of just 39 (Lockdown became too much for her 😞) and DH diagnosed with a second chronic disease which caused a strain on us all. Life just feels very different now in a way I cannot describe. I wish more then anything to go back to 2019 life but I appreciate not everyone feels that way.

@BlastedPimples "I feel utterly lost and bewildered but also liberated since 2020"

may I ask how you feel liberated? Yes, I would like that feeling 😂

Everyone for themselves. No one wants to come to work anymore.

Maybe because that's what makes them happier? Why do they need to come to work for you to feel better about yourself? Off course people will do what's best for them, why shouldn't they. We have found a much work/life balance wfh so that's what we do. Almost everyone I know has resumed life as normal and talk about Covid as if it was something that happened ages and ages ago.

My life isn't any different at all. We all (including the children) emerged from Covid unscathed.

During Covid just went to work as normal.

Since 2021 had a nightmare at work as colleagues who had been allowed to temporarily work from home refused to come back to work and one by one took a year off sick leaving the rest of us to cope with their absences. They seem to think Covid changed their contracts of employment.

Both DH and I got huge promotions with significant pay rises.

I got a job that wouldn't have be open to me before wfh as I would have been expected to relocate to London.

Both now wfh.

Big improvements in quality of life.

Lots of money saved and lots of disposable income.

Getting to travel more ticking off bucket list destinations.

Family all healthy.

Qualified as a teacher
Left unhappy marriage
Enjoyed lockdown on my own with the dc and ddog
Met an amazing man end of 2020
Married two years now
😀

So financially and emotionally I am worlds away from where I was and I feel very lucky.

@thefirstmrsrochester your labrador will NEVER let you down. I got one in May 2020. BF for life.

Better.

Ok, it hasn't all be plain sailing as both OH and I lost a parent (neither were COVID related but it had made contact difficult and funerals were minimal) but WFH was a revelation and when they started to call us back into the office (my company were thankfully very slow at doing this) I made the decision to retire early (57 instead of my target of 60) and forget work completely.
OH (55) had to keep going into work throughout Covid but has now slowed down to 2-days a week and will stop completely next year to join me in retirement.

It put things into perspective.

All our old people died. None of them from covid. So we are the oldest generation now.

Things are much worse. Long Covid for over 2 years. Just been diagnosed with permanent neurological damage. No longer able to work, so finances are now a huge worry.

Overall, I live a quieter life than pre-covid. But I think that's more due to cost of living

Better after Covid for me. I wouldn’t go back to 2019 for many reasons. Worked in frontline healthcare during Covid which was hard physically and mentally, almost had a breakdown but had to keep working.
since then I’ve changed jobs and we’ve moved house. Our whole family is happier now

Not huge changes. However Covid led me to growing out my short hair and layers. Much prefer how it is now.

Sending hugs to all those who have suffered heartache and hardship.

I'm self employed. Wasn't eligible for the covid grants. Lost over half my clients overnight, as most were small businesses such as B&Bs, shops, etc., who were forced to close. Many never re-opened. 4 years later and my turnover is down by two thirds and profits virtually zeroised. Many of my old clients took jobs as delivery drivers or working in supermarkets/care homes and simply never re-started their businesses. Pre covid, I'd have a steady stream of new clients each year as people opened up new businesses, started new self employments, etc., but since covid, I've had about 2 new clients over the 4 years.

OH has incurable cancer and has been on chemo drugs for 5 years. He's ECV so it's too risky for him to go to crowded/indoor places even with him being on anti viral drugs and covid jabs - so that means we can't go on holiday, can't go to social events, etc.

All in all, covid has been a real bummer in so many ways and our lives today are nothing like they were in 2019!

In 2020 I lost both parents and my job of 15 years. I've gone from being a rock to a pebble. The "old me" is slowly coming back but I very much doubt I'll ever return fully to being the person I once was.

Lockdown was a revelation - I realised that there was no part of my previous life that I missed at all. I loved not having to go anywhere, do anything (apart from work, which was on a laptop) or interact with anyone apart from my daughter.
Everything I did previously was done out of some kind of societal pressure to "do all the things" because everyone else was doing them.
I also realised that there is no part of life that I actually want to participate in or would do out of choice.
So since lockdown I have just carried on in much the same way - I still WFH and do what is necessary to pay the bills. I make sure my daughter has what she needs for school, and drop her off at various sport and music activities that she likes to do, but other than that I don't go anywhere unless absolutely essential. Being near other people now just feels very unpleasant.
I guess I realised that I don't have to pressure to myself to do all the other things I used to do prior to 2020 when life was always 'busy', because it's all pretty pointless - life was so much calmer when the world shut down and there were no expectations to go anywhere.

At the time I remember wishing that it would just stay like that permanently. It didn't, but I guess I did.

Working from home has been a fantastic change for me and my teenage kids. It has also meant I have moved from part time to full time work as I am more available to them (see, Tories - working from home can bring economic benefits)

on the more negative side - I no longer look forward so much to things like flights, concerts etc as there have been so many instances where either the event has had to be cancelled or moved, or there is the threat of covid ruining it. So nothing feels quite so certain. It’s not only covid that’s done that by the way - things like strikes etc have affected things too, but I no longer have that same unbending trust that plans will happen.

Mines gotten better but not due to Covid or anything

2020/2021 went through IVF and was successful and have lovely dd who will be two very soon
Returned to work early but due to new job with 17k payrise. Full time return which wasn't planned but couldn't turn down the money. Contracted roll
Then got a permanent role with the same salary

Done really well personally in my hobby (team hobby) and have experienced things I didn't think I ever would

Downside - despite the pay increase I'm 20k in debt (mostly accumulated during Covid and has continued building). I think I have a plan out but it does consume my thoughts a lot!

My youngest caught covid, later nearly died & diagnosed with type one diabetes (and now bossing his diabetes 👏🏻)
I picked up reading again and read over 400 books since 2020.
My eldest got into a SEN school and has dramatically improved across all boards. 👏🏻
I got another cat.

Bad things:

My grandparents both had cancer, but both beating it currently.
Fell out with the mother in law which is still on going but it's peaceful so.... 🤷🏻‍♀️

All in all hasn't changed to dramatically?

We’re happier in some ways but one thing has changed us.
Both now WFH, huge difference to our work/home life balance.
Moved house in 2021 - DMIL moved in with us (it’s all fine btw).
DD finally got to join the Navy, a year later than originally planned.
BUT, my lovely, sweet, funny DSIL got stomach cancer during the 2nd lockdown, poor intervention, slow treatment etc. She died this April.
We really miss her.

I don't trust society anymore. It is terrifying to think that a government can take away people's livelihoods and freedoms. I pay my taxes (a lot) and look after myself physically. If it happened again I would relocate to Eastern Europe where life was freer. However, I don't think governments would lock people down again... Printing money and stopping supply chains has caused inflation. I think people are sadder... many friends have children who have not really recovered from missing the normal socialisation of their teenage years.

July 2020 gradated as a mature student with a 2:1 law degree
Weighed 16st
July 2021 graduated my Legal Practice Course
Started working in a law firm as a paralegal
Having worked to lose weight, weighed 12st
Jan 2022 met someone
May 2022 found out I was pregnant
Oct 2022 got engaged
Dec 2022 bought our house
Had a beautiful baby
Weighed 16st again :(
Oct 2023 eloped
Weigh 13 stone
Nov 2023 went back to work after mat leave
Weigh 13 stone

So pretty radical changes!!! 😁

Lost 1.5 stone, got a new job, discovered yoga and therapy, moved my kids to online school.

It's mixed here. Finally moving forward again but still up and down.

2020 saw OH diagnosed with cancer, 2021 saw us get married, 2022 saw me widowed. Life is very different, I miss him every single day but every single day I look for that thing he would've seen and text me about to tell me it was a beautiful day and every day I find it.