How to Manage Post-Lockdown Anxiety as We Approach Freedom Day
So many of us have got used to the safety of our homes, face masks and social isolation. With the end of lockdown in sight, even some social butterflies among us are reluctant to spread our wings and get back to normal. Many people are reeling with excitement to re-engage with their daily routines and social activities, but there are also those that are crippled with fear and panic.
Here are five tips to manage anxiety, boundaries and a safe transition forwards into a new chapter of life. Whilst some of us might crave our old lives back, others might want to press our reset buttons, reinvent ourselves and co-create a more authentic world with a sense of purpose, passion and more conscious connection with those in our lives.
Media-acclaimed personal development consultant, Kenny Mammarella-D’Cruz, suggests that we can use this opportunity to be clear about our choices and present to the world a more authentic, covid-updated versions of ourselves on the back of freedom day. Surely, this is our opportunity to take stock, reflect and review.
Here are his five top tips to help you feel empowered and not powerless as lockdown ends.
1. BE TRUE TO YOURSELF. Whilst some people believe that the Covid-19 virus was a hoax, others have suffered illness and sadly lost loved ones. Either way, respect others and be true to your choices. Protect yourself in whatever ways are true to you, then respectfully extend yourself to those around you. I've seen far too many people collude with naysayers, compromising their boundaries and the wellbeing of their loved ones, only to feel fear and remorse later on.
2. TAKE YOUR TIME WITH TOUCH. Many people have been starved of physical touch. Some might fear it, some might ache for it, some might sexualise it, and many might not know how to navigate it. So, how about discussing it before you reconnect with people? Should you find yourself unexpectedly before a familiar face, take a slow, deep breath, make gentle eye contact, negotiate elbows, handshakes, and hugs without frantically fumbling for the fix.
3. REINVENT YOURSELF. Traditionally, social groups don't allow change unless you've been in an accident, ailing, abroad, or absent for whatever reason - like lockdown! So be clear about who you now are, how you wish to be treated, how to hold your boundaries and consciously reconnect beyond your old auto-persona. Come from that more authentic space inside of you to create a space in front of you for the world to meet you, as you wish, on your terms.
4. ACCEPT THE CHAOS. Being attached to old pictures and trying to fix what's out of control will cause stressful days and sleepless nights. If you're going through nightmares with your livelihood, love-life or your community is in chaos, remember that we're in a cataclysmic change together. You don't have to do this alone. MenSpeak men's groups have held weekday lunchtime MenCheck-in groups since lockdown began for men to be heard, stay sane and safe, whilst contributing to their communities.
5. GIVE ENERGY TO WHAT YOU WANT TO GROW. Which ways of society simply didn't work for you? What from the old ways will you not collude with anymore? How do you wish people to be treated in your world? Feel into this and take that feeling into your daily life to create the environment you wish to live in. Give energy with what you want to grow, not with what you want to go. Create consciously with your thoughts, words and deeds.
Kenny Mammarella-D'Cruz launched his ground-breaking men's groups over 20 years ago, has held daily online men's groups since lockdown and his ebook Online Men's Group Success is an Amazon No. 1 best-seller, launched during lockdown to empower others to hold their own groups so men can be heard, stay sane and cause no harm to self or others during lockdown. His facilitation day training is accredited and earns therapists CPD points and his groups have served thousands of men and women the world over since lockdown. He runs a successful private practice from London's Mayfair and online.