As the country – or most of it, anyway – gets ready to see lockdown relaxed further, it’s a chance to look at the remainder of the year and find ways to make up for lost time.
Whether you yourself intend to take full advantage of the additional freedoms that are being opened up, the rest of 2020 could yet be a chance to enjoy a return of something resembling normality.
The biggest caveat to this is, of course, that we have spent the first half of the year dealing with a situation that few of us have ever imagined experiencing. Although the second half could yet have an exciting outcome, it’s a good idea to stop and check whether or not you’re ready to get going.
Primarily, it is important to consider your health – and most importantly, all the aspects of it that were so easily forgotten as we all came to terms with the threat of a new virus most of us had never heard of.
How is your mental health after months of lockdown?
One of the most commonly-advanced arguments against locking down was that there would be a negative impact on people’s mental health; this, in and of itself, is not a controversial statement. Nobody is ever particularly thrilled to see their plans thrown into chaos and additional limitations placed on their movements.
However, several other excessive claims have been made. It has been suggested without evidence that suicides have risen by 200% during the lockdown period. People have argued that “the cure may be worse than the disease”, which is a fanciful statement given how many lives the virus has ended.
Nonetheless, of course it is worth taking stock of your mental health as we prepare to open up our lives a little more. Going out more often, and returning to places we hadn’t visited in months, isn’t something that happens without placing stresses on us.
It’s OK to be reluctant to join in as people around you are heading out. If you need to talk through your feelings about “getting back to normal”, there are plenty of options to do just that.
Have you been sitting on a symptom?
The warnings, advice and information with regard to the Covid-19 virus itself have all been so prevalent that it’s been hard to ignore it. If you’ve experienced any of the symptoms of the condition, it’s been essential to act, and to sound the alarm to friends and family.
On the other hand, many people have been slow to deal with symptoms they experience that aren’t Coronavirus-related, particularly if the symptom has nothing at all to do with the respiratory system.
There can no longer be any delay if you’re keeping quiet about a symptom. It doesn’t matter if you were staying away to avoid overloading the health service or because you fear contamination. If you’re ill, your body isn’t going to wait for the virus to subside entirely.
All doctor surgeries are adopting safety protocols, and there are online doctors if you’re really resistant to attending in person. Then, by identifying a safe online pharmacy, you can even get medication without having to run the gauntlet. Your general health hasn’t stopped mattering during this crisis, so don’t take risks with it.
How is your physical health and fitness?
Many of us have been taking great care to get the exercise we need even if we can no longer go to the gym, but not all of us have been able to do so. Not all of us have had the time or the space, and when we transition back into something resembling normality, one of the surprises that awaits many of us will be how much it takes out of us.
While it’s broadly agreed that responding to the crisis has been tiring in itself, it doesn’t mean that the ending of lockdown will make that tiredness go away.
A “normal” shopping trip can mean several miles of walking, some of it also involving a lot of lifting and carrying. There are certain challenges attached to a lot of the things we used to do without thinking.
Taking a break from those may well mean that, when you get back to “normal”, you’re going to be surprised by how difficult you find things initially. It may sound very spoiled, but even when we’re talking about non-essential shopping trips, easing yourself back in is still a wise step.
Listen to official advice, but don’t rely solely on that
There are plenty of opinions being had and shared with regard to the official advice we all receive in relation to the virus. Perhaps the most reasonable way to look at it all is as follows: Yes, we should be following official recommendations, but we shouldn’t wait to be told to take precautions.
As an example, it took some time and some debate for the experts to advise the wearing of masks in public. While it’s been clear for a while that wearing them is a good idea, the simpler point is that they won’t do you any harm, so you should wear them anyway. If you feel, likewise, that wearing gloves would make you feel more comfortable, don’t wait for official advice on that.
Even as we relax restrictions, it’s obvious that there are still new infections happening, and you don’t want to be one of those. So if you believe that some protective equipment will help you feel more at ease, go ahead and wear it. There is no such thing as an excess of caution when we are living through the worst pandemic in over a century.
It is clear that, although infections and deaths are on a downward trend, the virus has not gone away. Nonetheless, there are ways and means to gain back a modicum of normality in life and, as long as you take care, these are worth exploring. However, it is vitally important to first consider your health and fitness and judge whether you are ready to end your own personal lockdown.
