As I write this, the government have just announced a new national lockdown in England. I know that for a lot of you this is absolutely terrifying - I remember the feeling of dread I had when they announced the first lockdown and although I feel better about this one, I’m still nervous so I can only imagine how some of you are feeling. During the first lockdown I spent everyday wondering what to do and I got to the end of it annoyed that I’d not done anything productive for 3 months when everyone else was posting pictures of their baking, the new language they’d learnt or the musical instrument they taught themselves to play. If you need to just get through it on survival mode that’s totally fine and understandable. However, I’m personally feeling a little more positive about Lockdown 2.0 now I know what to expect, so I thought sharing how I plan to use my time might be helpful if you’re wanting to do something but not knowing where to start.
I know that you’re very understanding, but I just want to share a few disclaimers before we get started because otherwise someone that doesn’t usually read my blog is going to come along and get mad.
I know that I’m in a very privileged position to have a home where I feel safe and comfortable and I live in an area where I feel safe to go outside, we need to be careful but we can afford to get through the next month, and I’m aware that I don’t live alone which will be one of the biggest struggles for a lot of people. I know that other people will struggle both financially and in terms of mental health. I also appreciate that not everyone will be furloughed and some of you will still have to go into work while others stay at home, and I can’t imagine how tough it will be for you over the next month. I also know that for a lot of you lockdown will mean having to do your normal hours from home, possibly with family members on furlough or that need looking after.
I know that I’m lucky to have a job that allows me to set my own hours and take some time off, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have my own issues to deal with. What I’m trying to say is that we’re all going to struggle in some form over the next month, some more than others, but we will all find it tough so just try to be nice to each other. There’s a good (ship themed, of course) quote going around at the moment - “we’re not all in the same boat but we’re all in the same storm” which I don’t think could sum it up any better.
Pre-Lockdown
Obviously this will be different for you, depending on your current situation, but for me I’m using the 4 days that the government have taken to finalise and vote on the lockdown terms to get myself ready. I know that I struggle to write blog posts when Jack’s at home from my experience in the first lockdown, so I’ve spent an entire day writing blog posts so they’re scheduled for the next two months to allow me some time to get back into the swing of things after lockdown. Next, I’ve edited my Instagram photos and chosen hashtags for them so all I have to do is write in the captions and press publish, as I like to chat about what’s going on in my life at the time. I’ve also scheduled Pinterest for the next two weeks instead of doing that every day like I normally do, meaning I only have to go on it a few times during lockdown so I’m not on my computer the whole time.
Next, I’ve made a list of cupboard things that we are running low on so we can go to one of the bigger shops in our area. Just to be clear, I’m not encouraging panic buying. We are planning to buy one backup of the things we use multiple times a week, and maybe 2 if it’s something we use every day. This is because being gluten free, I’m more restricted to what I can eat and trying to do our weekly shop in the middle of the panic buying frenzy was too stressful last time. Our plan is to get what we need so we can live off store cupboard and freezer food and then go back to our usually weekly shop in a few weeks once everyone has calmed down a bit. I’ve also started to tidy and clean our home so that we can go into lockdown in a calm environment. I know this could wait until lockdown actually starts, but it’s what I need to make me feel better about the situation.
Finally, I’ve planned activities and things for us to do each day. I know that during the last lockdown we woke up every day wondering what to do, and on top of this I really struggled to get motivated for work. I have a list of the things I need to do every day like check my emails, a list of things I need to do every few days, like post on my social media, and a list of things I need to do less often like scheduling Pinterest and blog post promotion. From this list of things I need to do for my blog, I’ve split it into things that I can teach Jack to do and things that only I can do.
With the work list out of the way, the rest of the lists are things that we want or need to do to keep ourselves happy and entertained. We want to finish tidying the flat and sorting out as we never really finished moving in and we have some things we want to sell online so I’ll take the time to do that - going for walks is on our “things we should do” list too, as I find I really need daily exercise or my mental health declines. Our list of nice things to do include playing games (either board games or on the computer), doing quizzes, baking (something we always enjoy doing together), colouring, reading, watching films, taking a picnic to the beach if it’s nice weather, etc etc. We also have a list of things to do if we need time to ourselves, because as much as you can enjoy someone’s company you still need time for a mental reset.
I know I’ve gone a bit overboard with the lists and that might not be for you - when I’m stressed I plan. Like I said before this is what personally helps me stay calm about another lockdown. I find that having ideas of things to do and a bit of a schedule makes me feel more in control of the situation. If that’s not for you then you probably have ideas of how you cope and any spare time you have over these four days is a good time to put things in place to help you in the long run.
Daily Life in Lockdown
I’ve got a bit of a plan in my head of how I want to spend my time in lockdown. I’m used to working 5 days, then having two days off mid-week with Jack. However, during the last lockdown our best moments were being able to spend time together. With that in mind, I’ve got a mini-daily schedule. When we get up each day I’m going to spend a few hours answering my emails and working on anything that I need to do for my blog. When I’m done with that I will need some time to get out of the house and get some sunshine and fresh air before it goes dark. When I get home from my walk, this is the time where I intend to switch off and spend time on the things that we enjoy. Obviously this plan won’t work every day - it depends on how we’re feeling and how much work I have to do, but having a rough idea of how to spend our time really helps me feel calmer. Trying to cram a month’s worth of content creation into 4 days is stressful, but having the luxury of being able to spend less time working during lockdown will make it worth it.
What to Do When Things Get Tough
Having my plan to keep me from getting too stressed is all well and good but being realistic it’s not going to work all of the time. I found during the previous lockdown that some days were easier than others - some days I was stressed and fed up and nothing seemed to be working. For these occasions the daily plan is going out the window and I’ll be spending the day looking after myself. For me that either means spending time with Jack having a duvet day, going out for walks or doing a full beauty routine - having a long shower, washing my hair and doing a face mask helps me mentally reset because I feel fresh physically.
I also have a lot of distractions planned for when I need to take a day off. I have a few colouring books (including a cruise ship colouring book!), I bought a Nintendo DS and Animal Crossing: New Leaf in the last lockdown which was a godsend, I have some craft bits for when I need to keep my mind busy, and a list of films I want to watch for when I need to switch off my brain. You don't need to buy an expensive console to relax - playing any games will help you relax, so either scour the internet for second hand board games (they usually only cost a few pounds) or try free online computer games such as free cribbage online.
A Note on Being Productive
Throughout the last lockdown we were constantly bombarded with questions about how we were using this time, what skills we were learning or if we were volunteering. In all honesty we were just trying to make it through the day. I have the worst “future anxiety” - if I don’t know what to expect then I will stress myself into oblivion. During the last lockdown I was just existing, and if you need to do that in this lockdown that’s fine - you shouldn’t feel pressured into achieving something.
Having said that, now I’ve got experience of what a lockdown is like I actually want something to focus on during this lockdown. We’ve talked about what languages we would like to ty to learn and any skills we would like to try to work on. Since we started living together I’ve taught Jack a little Spanish, but to be honest I’m really struggling to switch between languages having not travelled and only spoken English for so long, so as Jack wants to learn more Spanish I’m going to try to teach him, and we’ll use different language learning resources to help him improve and to give me a badly needed refresher!
Coming Out of Lockdown
Honestly this is what I’m dreading the most. When we came out of the last lockdown I’d spent 3 months with Jack and I’d entirely forgotten how to be alone. The first day he went back to work I just sat on the bed for half an hour because I had no idea what to do with myself - honestly the first few weeks were awful. I’m hoping that it won’t be as bad this time because I’ve already experienced it once and it’s not going to be as long as the first lockdown, but I’m still planning things to do when Jack goes back to work, and I’ve already written my Christmas blog posts so I can afford to take time away from my blog if I need to during those first few weeks. If this is something you’re likely to struggle with then try to make a list of all of the things that you would normally do when you’re on your own - pick some TV programmes that your partner would never let you watch, try some crafts or play a game that they wouldn’t be interested in. When we come out of this lockdown we’re also going to be very close to Christmas, so it might help you to plan what you’re going to do over the festive season if you’re in a position to be able to celebrate.
Hopefully reading a bit about how I’m planning to spend this time might help you if you’re also going to be at home during lockdown. I know that my plans are very specific to me, my job and my life situation, but how we deal with lockdown is always going to be a personal thing so my plan was never going to apply to you. I just hope that by reading how I intend to deal with things it will give you a bit of inspiration for how to look after your own mental health during the weeks ahead.
As ever, if you find yourself feeling alone and need someone to chat to then feel free to drop me a message on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. We all struggle sometimes so if I can help brighten your day then I will always be happy to listen, chat or distract you from what’s going on and we’ll get through it together.
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