Pandemic blues

It seems I am not alone, and I don’t know whether that’s a good thing, or a bad thing. If the reports are to be believed, the majority of the nation is suffering  quite badly, mentally during this third national lock-down, and much more so than was the case during the first.

I’m not sure what happened during the second shut-down, sandwiched as it was between complicated, and often inconsistent periods of restrictions, known as Tiers – no pun intended. This current incarceration though is a real bummer, especially as it coincides with two of the coldest and most miserable months of the year.

January and February aren’t brilliant, at the best of times, but at least there are warmer days to look forward to, holidays to plan and, particularly missed at the moment, cosy evenings tucked away in the comforting warmth of a local pub, enjoying a pint or two in the company of friends. There are also occasional excursions or days out to help break up the gloom and lighten one’s load.

The beginning of 2021 sees none of these welcome pattern interrupts occurring, and instead we are confined to our own homes and only allowed out for a handful of specific reasons. Exercise – that essential pick-me-up and mood enhancer, is only allowed within a prescribed radius of one’s own home, preventing people like me with a National Trail to complete, from jumping on a train and walking in a different area.

We are not supposed to meet up with family or friends, even in an outdoor setting; a totally ludicrous and unnatural state of affairs. The population, on the whole, are behaving like compliant sheep, having been sacred witless by tales of impending doom, and whilst I don’t wish to play down the seriousness of the situation, it is surely time for a more balanced approach than this soul-destroying, involuntary, self-incarceration.

There’s no escape from it though, try and behave normally and you will feel the full weight of a police state come crashing down on you, and in case you had forgotten the message, adverts assail our eyes and ears with an Orwellian “Newspeak” message. “Protect the NHS,” say the ads, when surely the role of the health service should be the other way round, and protect us?

Now I know I will be castigated for that statement, and my heart goes out to all hard-pressed healthcare staff, working on the front-line. I also fully agree we should do our utmost to contain this insidious virus, but there are ways and means. Most of us are sufficiently grown up to know we should act responsibly, without it being drummed into us by the nanny state, so please give us a break from these utterly depressing ads!

Returning now to the issue of mental health, and further explanation as to why it should be so bad during this lock-down. We have already mentioned the weather and the complete contrast with those balmy days and mild dusky evenings of early summer, sat outside in the garden enjoying an alfresco meal and a few cool glasses of beer.

Now, after ten months of on and off restrictions of varying severity, pandemic fatigue is really setting in. The media are making it worse, with tales of new variants of the virus, capable of spreading faster, and possibly less susceptible to the vaccines that are hurriedly being rolled out. There are rumours that the lock-down may have to be extended into April, and possibly beyond that – cheer us all up, why don’t you?

No wonder many of us are depressed; six in ten men, if the reports are correct, and seven in ten women. This article in the New Statesman, sums up the situation far better than I can, but basically because it is difficult to see an end to the pandemic, despite the promise of release offered by the vaccines, people have little to look forward to beyond the dull monotony that goes with cutting all but essential contact with our fellow human beings.

I’ve written before that I’m fortunate in going to work five days a week, and I can honestly say that without the contact and interaction with my workmates, I would probably have cracked long ago, but work isn’t everything. Us humans need some variety in our lives, along with the odd spot of pleasure too. Those trips out, visiting new places or re-visiting old haunts, all help lighten the mood, as do times spent with friends and family, and yet we’re made to feel bad and accused of being selfish for wanting to experience these normally acceptable pastimes and high points in our daily lives.

So, is it just me, or are others feeling the same? I strongly suspect the latter, but what can be done about it, apart from remaining patient?  Pursuits that help take our mind off things certainly help -reading, writing, exercising outdoors, or a project to get stuck into, are all good examples, as is any pursuit that brings satisfaction and a sense of achievement.

One of the best ways to prevent the gloom from taking hold is to watch or listen to news reports sparingly. We all know that bad news sells copy, which is why the media fall over themselves to serve up as much of it, as they can.  Stories become tested and facts become exaggerated, tacitly encouraged by the government to perpetuate the state of fear and keep the nation compliant.

For the sake of your mental health, give all this gloom a wide birth. Look instead for the good news, the heart-warming and encouraging stories, and that way there won’t be room inside your mind for the bad stuff. I know there are some with a vested interest in prolonging this misery for a long as possible, but remember pandemics always end one way or another, and even if the end doesn’t work out quite as we might like, this current one will end, and things will gradually get better.

Ending on a positive note, just writing this piece has helped lift my mood considerably and given me fresh encouragement to keep going and look for the light that must surely be there at the end of the tunnel.