The Best and Worst Changes Brought On By the Pandemic

It’s sometimes hard to remember our life pre-pandemic, when we didn’t think twice about traveling places, gathering with our family for the holidays, and when schools only closed on snow days. Some people have been hit harder than others by the virus, but we’ve all had to make some adjustments in our lives to adapt to the “new normal.” Here are the good, the bad, and the not-so-bad changes that were brought on by the pandemic over the past couple of years.

A New Focus on Mental Health

Many employees were laid off or furloughed during the pandemic. With their places of employment closed, some started feeling anxious and worried about an uncertain future. We saw a rise in mental health issues, especially among younger people that could no longer attend school in person. Depression, major depressive disorder, and thoughts of taking one’s own life became common among teens and young adults. Thankfully, the internet came to the rescue by opening new avenues of treatment. Counseling services are now conducted via telehealth over the phone or via video portal, making it easier for everyone to reach out to mental health professionals.

Working From Home With Kids

Working mothers were hit particularly hard by the pandemic as they were told to pack up their belongings at the office and to start working from home. Add to that their children staying home all day, not being able to attend school in person, and having to join classes online via video conferencing platforms. Moms had to be the makers of breakfasts, lunches, and snacks. They had to become IT experts when their little one’s laptop or video conferencing software had issues. They had to make sure their little ones were paying attention to the teacher on the computer screen. And they still had to perform all their job duties! This led to feelings of being overwhelmed and exhausted, as well as increased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression in mothers.

Staying Fit Without a Gym

All the local gyms had to close during the pandemic, leaving us to our own devices when it came to exercising and staying healthy. Here again, the internet came to our help by providing exercise videos we could watch and follow at home. Bicycles became a hot commodity, as they provided a great way to get exercise while maintaining social distance. Stationary bicycles, treadmills, and wearable activity trackers helped us stay on track by monitoring our heart rates and how many calories we burned. Some people developed an affinity for home cooking, discovering new recipes online that were good for the body and the soul. Cooking from scratch helped us stay healthier as we could avoid fatty foods, processed meats, and unhealthy ingredients in our recipes. And not going out to eat as often as we used to was also not only good for our wallets, but the combination of exercising and eating healthy was good for overall mental health.

Changing From Suits to Sweats

Because we didn’t have to leave home to go to work, a lot of us stopped investing time and money looking our best in professional attire, opting instead to don yoga pants and sweatpants most days of the week. We might have felt cozier and more comfortable, but that made it more difficult to separate work life from home life, and in turn, increased feelings of anxiety and depression. Now that quarantining is over, it’s time to step out of the house in style. Engage in a little retail therapy, which has been shown to increase joy and fight lingering feelings of sadness, and go shopping for clothes that make you look and feel great. You don’t have to spend a fortune on a new outfit; just pick something that’s comfortable and flattering. Even at night, adding a little boldness to your wardrobe will make you feel good about yourself. So, it’s time to dump the frump and glam it up as we come out of the pandemic.

During the pandemic, technology has helped us keep in touch, access information, and learn new skills, and we’ve discovered our own resilience and resourcefulness. Our pre-pandemic life may never fully come back, so let’s learn to embrace the positive changes that have taken place over the past 2 years.

Dorothy Watson is a mental health advocate. She grew up with a single mother suffering from bipolar disorder. Watson's mother was not properly diagnosed until she was 12 years old, so Watson witnessed the struggles of mental health firsthand. This experience caused her to advocate for people whose mental health and wellness have not been properly addressed.

The views expressed on this blog are solely those of the blog post author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Psych Congress Network, the Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Learning Network, or other Network authors. Blog entries are not medical advice.