Bored and depressed - what does everyone do to get thro the day

[Springcatkin]

Only been furloughed for 3 days and already I can't cope. I feel so depressed and useless, have no contact with the rest of my team who are still working from home and now doing my work on top of theirs. Feel so isolated and BORED.
What do people do to get thro the days?
I haven't even managed to summon up enough energy to even go for a walk.
Cannot imagine how I will cope with a month of this
I live with teenage ds who spends most of his time in his room / online schoolwork / chatting to his mates so altho I am not completely alone I have no adult company.

OP, sorry to hear you're finding it hard. It can't be easy in your work situation.

First, try and think of the things you love to do at home when not working, watching a film, TV, reading a book, yoga, craft whatever. Start with those in your list.

What jobs need doing around your house/garden? Some have decorated rooms, I've thrown myself into deep cleaning, decluttering and tidying the house room by room. Bought some seeds and bedding plants for pots so the garden is nice and colourful while at home more. Touched base with family and friends more or even work colleagues. A lot are using zoom.

I'm fairly active walking everywhere and in one of my jobs, so have gone out every day for a nearby hill walk or bike ride, but sometimes I just go for a 20 min walk because I can - it does me good, exercise, fresh air, appreciating nice things around and passing people, saying hello.

Hope you feel better soon

This is the downside of allowing your job to define you and consume you, live to work or work to live?

Volunteer, check on elderly neighbours, ring old friends/vulnerable older relatives, pray.

I have learned how to bake bread and curry (not together)! If i had more time I would slot in yoga for 1-2 hours a day,

If you do nothing else, go for a walk for at least 45 min at some point every day.

Then, ban yourself from screen except for certain times.

The walking and the bumping into people will cheer your mood. (It’s things like noticing the changes in people’s gardens, bird song etc).

Not using screen will mean you get bored and are forced to do something more productive.(even just sweeping the floor!)

And then when it’s your screen time, you feel like you’ve earnt it so you don’t feel guilty.

And it builds from there and becomes a virtuous circle. You feel better so you do more. And you see how much you’ve achieved so you want to do more.

Or, give yourself a break buy some chocolate and watch a film you love. We have a day like that every week or so when no one can be arsed.

3 days?

You're going to need to prepare yourself for good, bad and utterly awful days, I'm 8 weeks in. However I have diagnosed depression and anxiety and I haven't read every post so may have missed something.

I've had a good day today. Did sone washing, exercised, loaded the dishwasher and took a shower.

I'm hoping tomorrow will be similar but if it's not and the only thing I do is get dressed, then that's ok. If I spend the day in my pyjamas and do nothing, then that's ok too.

Surely you have interests/hobbies away from work?

Read, draw, garden, craft, bake, clean, decorate, puzzles.

Thanks all, some great ideas. I live in a rented flat with a small patio so my only gardening has been geraniums which survived from last year, peas and a herb container. Also cannot do any DIY for same reason.
Am already on meds for depression so can feel it starting to take over again.
Making a list (and definitely including shower - I have been so lazy about that not having to go out whilst wfh for the last 6 weeks or so) and trying to make sure I get out for a walk every day sounds like a good start.
Before lockdown I was heavily into sport - watched pretty much everything on tv or live football/ cricket. The last few weekends I have spent at least half reading but finished that series (Mitchell & Markby) and yet to feel like another.

Trying to read and draw and play piano which are things I enjoy anyway.

Also decluttering which is long overdue.

Exercise is helping a bit - I have long term issues that mean I can’t do a huge amount but I designed myself a little workout that I’m doing daily and adapting as I think of additions, and short sessions on the exercise bike.

I have random bursts of throwing myself into keeping the kids busy (home education stuff for DS, which isn’t new as he was HE anyway) and making activities for the toddler which often require the laminator (fun!)

Watching new stuff online as I find even that is better than ending up endlessly scrolling Facebook etc which makes me feel like crap. New Netflix shows, all the free streamings on YouTube of musicals and plays.

iPad/switch games, online quiz nights.

Sitting in the garden just for a change of scene.

Some days though, like today, I lack motivation and feel like shit (although I am PMTing anyway) and can’t really bring myself to do much of anything and I feel like a vegetable. I did manage to force myself exercise but that is only because I’m pissed off I am starting to regain weight I’d lost this year!

I was the same day one, sobbed my guts out :) I felt completely useless. 6 weeks later, now I wonder how I’m going to go back to my past life.

For someone’s whose “hobbies” were work and socialising, it was an adjustment, but the slower pace does now suit me.

List! Coffee, shower, a treatment (face mask, hair mask, nails?), read news, yoga with Adrienne (I’m crap but love it), massive walk, cook something new, bake for elderly neighbours, watch new tv series, read, get in contact with friends, do one domestic job a day...

I started a photography challenge with friends for our daily walks, did themes (rainbow, red first day etc, numbers, churches, flowers, tiles, glass... ) and posted them on a whatsapp stream, looked AMAZING... another friend started a mandala challenge, finding the beauty in everyday... omg, the entries are insane... like the “view from my window” page on facebook, I’m obsessed

Good luck xxx

Me and DH have decorated the spare bedroom and are now decorating our room. We have stripped the old paper off the walls on the landing, down the stairs and in the hallway so will decorate there once our room is finished.

I have painted an old small table to go in our room and an old G Plan unit which is now in the spare bedroom. Also painted our pine bed. I have 2 bedside cupboards, a large dressing table and a wardrobe to paint.

We have also done some gardening. We are both doing an free online Open University course which is fun. We are watching some programmes we recorded last year and not had time to watch before. I have done some knitting and hope to teach myself to crochet. I also want to learn to sew better than I do now.

We both love reading and have loads of unread books (I have around 90) but so far have not really had the time to do any reading. We have watched some of the free plays from the National Theatre. We have also listened to audio books online, played scrabble, done online suduku puzzles.

We both love cooking and have made some meals for the freezer. This week we are going to make bread and rolls.

Really with the internet there is so much to do. We are lucky that we have that

The pressure was on when working hard.

It is now back when idle. Do this, do that, bake bread, batch cook and wash your hands every five minutes and do yoga and walk and be active every minute. WTF.

Honestly, there is no hope apart from the lethargic lazy gits like myself. Am loving this.

We're all basically finding ways of functioning through the days until the govt let us in on how we're getting out of this mess! Me included.

I love, and miss my work. Now I walk every day. it was an hour a day, now up to two hours a day in the woods and fields nearby.
I am reading more and doing an online beginners class in a subject which interests me. It’s free so why not?
Doing the garden, planting seeds, potting up seedlings.
Lots of listening to bird song and just enjoying being outside.
Housework of course, with teens and young adults at home. Taking more care of my skin with face masks and new products. Trying new recipes and doing more baking. drinking way too much

I'm still working 4 days a week from home but on my day off and weekend I always have a to do list. Usually cleaning jobs but also some DIY jobs that I've been putting off - this is a perfect opportunity to get those jobs done given there's nothing better to do! I also take up some new crafts - I've started a new knitting project (taught myself basic knitting via YouTube vids) and some painting and drawing. I also try to work our most days - again, YouTube vids or I go for a walk or a lovely long bike ride. Often there's gardening to be done too. I also like reading so will do that or watch some tv for downtime in the evenings. Really, there is so much to do to fill your day with you just need to get up and get cracking!

Yes thanks WhiteChocTwix

But the lazy amongst us have no voice. We are all supposed to be doing lots of things every day.

There is really nothing wrong with doing as little as possible, we may never be in this position again for a long while. Embrace it and enjoy.

Plan, I've been planning my next holiday although being realistic and it won't be for a few years (corona and funds due to corona) but I'm enjoying planning where I'd like to go.
For me decluttering has been great, plan a draw at a time.

I binge watched series 1 and 2 of Flea Bag today.

I have mine and the kids' "To Do List" written on a big whiteboard. We like checking off the boxes.
I do like to run, so that's keeping me occupied.
Do try to force yourself to get out.
Brushing up on my Spanish and French. I was sh*t at baking. I found reading too hard. I have very little focus. Watching TV during the day makes me feel slovenly.

Good luck! And May the Fourth be With You

It gets easier, honestly. The first week I did basically nothing and cried a lot because I missed being at work (tragic I know). Now after six weeks most days feel relatively normal.

Do you have any creative hobbies? I've been doing loads of knitting and sewing, and it definitely passes the time. Also doing a little bit of cleaning each day has helped, even if I only have the energy for ten minutes at a time. Maybe something like Duolingo or an online puzzle game, that feels vaguely like it's engaging your brain but without being too taxing?

Supervising ds school work, gardening, redecorating, cleaning, running, karate with ds.
I’ve been furloughed since Apr 1, and I’m just starting to struggle

Plan my escape.
Today I went into town to go to post office, bought birthday cards there, got stuff for muesli from Poundland, had a laugh with the lasses in the health shop, and finished off in wilkos getting a new duvet.

Dropped chocs off for grandkids at their houses. Chatted to son and son in law at car. Spoke briefly to one grandson .
Came home and sat in the sunshine before a nice steak dinner and a Ozark.

Good day.

I get up early and do all my online work, then if the weather is ok I go out in the garden and do stuff out there. Then I have lunch, go for a walk or to the local shop. Then I tidy up, do household stuff. Then I sit down with a cuppa and the cat, and we watch the briefing. It's the only news I watch, because otherwise I get anxious and that's not good. I always make a nice dinner, and after that it's either TV and knitting, or an early night with a book. In between all of this I catch up on here, and talk/message friends and family.
It's not great, but I find a routine helps. I spent the first week of lockdown in my PJs watching Sky News all the time, and fretting. Now I get up when I wake up and crack on with my new normal. Some days are easier than others, and I'm lucky because I'm in school once a week with key worker/vulnerable kids, so I get a break too.

Following for ideas