Covid-19 and Lock Downs: What I Missed?

By Celine Healy

Strange isn’t it.

It took Covid-19 Quarantine/isolation, to reflect on what’s important in our daily lives. And. Upon reflection, it has highlighted exactly what I am missing during this forced lockdown.

Some people are introverts and being locked up inside for most of the day, may not mean anything new to them.

However. For those of us used to being out and about more, it has brought on the opportunity to reflect.

To acknowledge. To make decisions about what might need changing or improving, in what, and how we do life.

Being told what to do, when, and how, brings back memories of being in school.

Being told where you can and cannot go also feels limiting and, can, in fact, accentuate thoughts of negative self-talk and can reinforce deeply held negative beliefs.

Having our freedom curtailed, simply by walking down the street, or going to the supermarket, can exacerbate feelings of powerlessness, of loneliness or isolation. They could be available opportunities for growth.

It’s brought up a lot of “stuff” that I have been reflecting on at a deeper level. Although list may appear trivial, these things mean, so much more.

See if you can relate to these small things whilst in isolation.

Here is My List of What I am Missing During the Covid-19 Quarantine

I miss going for a walk to a café and siting down and having a long, slow, cup of coffee whilst I read a book.
I miss going to the pub and having a drink on a Sunday and lingering over the Sudoku whilst watching the footy.
I really miss the footy competition and barracking for the team.
I miss the camaraderie of our betting competition.
I miss trawling through op shops for bargains to fill up a nook in my little haven.
I miss the tactile, the feel of clothes when I shop.
I miss browsing in book shops.
I miss going to church and physically being part of the congregation, greeting each other, and singing the hymns.
I miss going to singing practice and being scolded by the music director for singing flat or being too enthusiastic over a passage, singing with great gusto, when the passage called for a more muted approach.
I miss congregating with the neighbors on the front porch over a glass of wine.

Those little things.

It’s interesting that when these things are denied how their prominence and importance in life can be recognized for what they are. Meaningful.

Sharing and caring and being involved in the simple things in life.

However, when one door shuts it allows our creative self to resource other possibilities.

This is what I learnt…

How to Cope in Covid-19 Isolation

Being entombed at home for the majority of the time, allowing for supermarket breaks and a daily walk – which I usually combine, has given me the time to reflect and to ask myself: “What could I be doing to improve my life in some small way.”
Upon reflection, the first thing I decided to investigate was ways to unlock the pain trapped within my hip. It had been there so long I was working around it. It kept me awake at night. Trawling YouTube
was sure to find a remedy.
I discovered sound therapy and how this vibration could unlock the stress trapped within the vagus nerve – which runs throughout the body, and which connects all of our major nerve pathways to our organs. It is helping.
I also discovered having tiny breaks from the computer, getting up and stretching was great idea.
I discovered that getting more relaxed sleep was hugely beneficial.
I discovered ecards that have singing messages and have sent out a few.
A friend of mine sends me funny videos, and I now take time to watch them when they arrive. I used to archive them until later.
I discovered that by washing clothes more often, I felt a sense of achievement, that I was taking more care of myself.
Reading detective novels before bed wasn’t great for getting to sleep, however, it was a great way to lose yourself.
I discovered that I could only take so much “breaking news” on every channel for the first two weeks. Now I read about things online. I figure if it is really important, I will somehow hear about it.
I discovered that having more home-cooked meals was a real treat.
I also realized that drinking two bottles of red wine in a week was not a good plan for having a clear head and feeling good about myself.
I discovered that my life has not really changed that much from what I usually did for the bulk of the time. Why? Because I mostly sit at my computer doing research, reading, and writing.

What I miss the most during Covid-19 quarantine/isolation, is the lack of freedom of choice.

– that I can go down the street when I want
– that I can sit in any café and stay there
– that I am forcefully isolated from people I want to see