We all know that lockdown, social distancing, or whatever you want to call it, isn’t easy. It’s completely shit. We all know that, it’s obvious. However, it isn’t made easier when social media is full of people bragging about their productivity.
It seems like everyone is smashing home workouts, renovating and spring cleaning their entire home whilst also reading a library’s worth of books and learning a new skill. I don’t know about you, but that hasn’t been the reality for me. My reality has involved some reading and exercise, but mostly it’s been a lot of empty biscuit packets and binge-watching Grey’s Anatomy (again).
Comparison is the enemy
When you compare yourself to someone else’s productivity, in general, it’s never going to end well. But that’s even more true during a situation like this.
If you’ve spent your time like mine, then it can feel like you’re wasting it. You start to beat yourself up for not making the most of this free time. It’s easy to feel like you’re lazy or a failure.
But here is the thing to remember: we are experiencing a global pandemic..
We haven’t got all this free time because we’ve collectively taken holidays from work. We have this free time because there is an absolutely terrifying situation occurring. It’s a situation that is completely unparalleled. None of us have never faced anything like this before.
With that comes feelings, emotions and thoughts that can be a struggle to deal with. You don’t have to have mental health issues to be experiencing suffocating waves of anxiety or cripplingly low moments right now. We are all experiencing the same things.
You can’t expect to function normally
These kinds of feelings don’t tend to go hand-in-hand with productivity. It’s a struggle to even function like normal with overwhelming feelings like this.
How can you expect yourself to do all those Instagram Live workouts when you can’t even face getting out of bed? Why do you think you’ll be able to think about learning French when your mind is overwhelmed by terrifying thoughts?
You aren’t expect to do that. Let go of that pressure to be productive during this situation. It is okay to simply survive – you don’t have to thrive.
Nobody is expected to come out of lockdown looking like a Victoria’s Secret model with a gorgeous, sparkling clean home as well as having completed the 50 book challenge and speaking fluent French. It’s okay to just come out of lockdown.
But, what if I put weight on?
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seeing soomany memes floating around all about putting on weight during lockdown. It’s easy to be scared of putting weight on. Diet culture and fatphobia are everywhere in our society, so why would now be any different?
I just want to say: it is okay to put on weight. It’s always okay, but especially now. Our bodies change and fluctuate constantly, especially during tricky times.
Just be kind to your body. There’s enough to feel worried about so take your body off that list of worries. Let your body, in the same way as your mind, do what it needs to survive this situation.
Beating yourself up for weight is just going to make you feel shit. And during a shitty time, do we really need to add to that? I think not. So just be kind, patient and loving, or even just neutral, towards your body.
It’s okay if all you’ve achieved today is getting out of bed.
It’s okay if you are struggling and can’t cope today.
It’s okay if you come out of this situation with some extra weight.
It’s okay if you just need to escape all the rubbish and binge-watch your favourite show.
At the end of the day, however you are dealing with this situation is okay. As long as you’re trying to look after and be kind to yourself and the ones around you.
How are you surviving during this situation?
Hannah xx
Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest
Let me know what you think?