This week marks the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) – a week that is aimed at creating awareness around metal health and providing opportunities for individuals to talk openly about all aspects of mental health. With this, Andy McKay – OnTrack’s International own Instructional Designer has opened up about his metal health and what he has learnt about himself during the Covid-19 restrictions and lockdowns.
A few weeks back I was listening to one of my regular podcasts and a listener had emailed in asking the hosts what they had learned about themselves during the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns that had taken place over the last 12+ months. I found this to be an interesting question, so I thought about it for myself; what had I learned about myself during these unprecedented times?
For me, I realised I need face-to-face human contact. Now this came as quite a surprise as I don’t do well with face-to-face human contact! I have suffered with anxiety for years and social situations are one of my many kryptonite’s. So, when the pandemic started and the first lockdown began, while I was anxious about the entire situation, lockdown didn’t seem that daunting to me. My friends and family all live up to north, so I’m used to sporadic contact and virtual meetings. I’m not one for going out to bars, clubs or sporting events, so the shutting down of leisure facilities didn’t impact me much, and the August before the March we went into lockdown I started a job where I was working from home full-time, so this wasn’t an issue either.
Fast forward a year and a bit and I’m counting down the days until I can go and visit people, until I can see my family, friends and colleagues. This is because during lockdown one of the things that was most prevalent for me was the feeling of loneliness and isolation. Once we were truly locked down, I was unable to physically see my friends or family in any way, shape or form. Add to that my partner being a key worker and working shifts, there were many hours of me being on my own. For someone who doesn’t like social situations, likes to have time to himself, this wouldn’t be an issue, but after a year of this it has proved to be difficult.
I’ve come to realise that my emotional wellbeing is greater than the sum of its parts. While it’s good to have time to myself, to be able to interact with others, get out there and have those different social situations is just as important, despite it being a constant source of anxiety.
And the most interesting part of this all, was that whilst listening to the podcast on which I first heard this question asked, all the hosts on that show either felt the same or said something else that they had learned that I could directly relate to. Despite being on the other side of the world, being in different professions and having different personal circumstances, we all seemed to share very similar experiences, thoughts, and feelings.
So why not ask yourself the question What have I learned about myself during the pandemic/lockdowns? The answer may come as a surprise to you. It may not, it might have been blatantly obvious what you would come out of this experience learning. You might even be unable to answer that question right now. Whichever it is, whatever the answer, whatever you might still be going through right now, just know that you are not alone. Whether it’s a friend or family member or someone half way round the world hosting a podcast, there are people that are sharing your experiences, people that can help, people that you can help.
Keep going, keep pushing, keep trying. Whether you can see it right now or not, there is a light at the end of this long, long tunnel and we will get there.
