For anyone who has ever suffered from anxiety, in any of its many forms, the feeling of being overwhelmed, feeling unable to cope, physical symptoms of shortness of breath, shakiness and sweating palms are all too common.

With the world experience of the last 12 months and beyond, being in and out of lockdowns and facing a pandemic like we have never seen before, has almost certainly added to our feelings of anxiety and unease.

Being on the cusp of moving out of national lockdowns and into a better, freer environment has led to many people feeling a new kind of social anxiety. For example, those long suffering from mental health conditions such as agoraphobia, fear of enclosed spaces or crowded areas and generalised anxiety may find their feelings and worries heightened by this change from a protected life we have become quite used to.

According to the Mental Health charity Mind, anxiety and depression are the two most common mental health issues and affect 8 in 10 people. Yet, talking about our mental health can still proved challenging, with many taking the approach to ignore how they feel and force themselves to keep going despite mental health issues. Mind also note an increase in mental health challenges for people across the UK following the pandemic, in a study released in July 2020. They sited a Mental Health emergency, with people being affected by the pandemic, the lockdowns and the loss of family members or separation from loved ones, as well as factors such as losing a job, facing domestic abuse and over consumption of ‘stress-inducing media reports’. Yet the study found that the majority of those struggling with mental health issues were unable to access the help they needed, or reluctant to access services for fear of ‘wasting NHS time’ or that their issues ‘were not that serious’.

Anxiety UK recently reported that post-lockdown anxiety figures reveal a ‘mixed picture’ with 36% of respondents out of 900 surveyed, noted they were happy to stay at home, while 27% noted they felt no strong feeling either way, adding to feelings of indifference to our new freedoms, after a long time being restricted in our daily lives. Of those experiencing anxiety about the lifting of restrictions, 46% sited the pressures of socialising generally as their biggest concern, while 30% were anxious about going to a busy shopping centre, and 23% of using public transport.

Yet, there was a finding that 37% of people were looking forward to returning to normal life, which shows a desire to interact with people and get out and about once again. Although, despite these positive feelings towards more freedom, we may need to think about how we approach our return to a more normal situation.

So, what can we do, if we have already have been suffering from anxiety or other mental health issues, or have discovered an increase in feelings of anxiety during and after the lockdowns?

The most obvious answer is to acknowledge how we’re feeling. To let ourselves have the time and space to understand how we feel and then think about how we can address these feelings. What might make us feel better? What might we need right now?

Some of the suggestions for coping with mental health challenges, as outlined by the Mind UK reports findings are as follows –

• –        Be kind to yourself – Getting through each day is enough.
• –        Keep talking to others about how you are feeling.
• –        Develop a new routine – You may be working from home or on limited hours, your lifestyle may have completely changed. Try to build a structure around your day so you feel more positive about getting things done.
• –        Find activities that help to distract you
• –        Limit how much news you engage with.

The five most positive coping strategies used by people in the study were as follows –

1.        Connecting with family and friends online – we can now connect in person, outside with family and friends too.
2.        Watching TV and films – Engrossing yourself in a tv series of a good film can do wonders for your emotions. Be sure not to use too much screen time though and take lots of breaks.
3.        Spending time outside – The positive affects of spending time in the outdoors and getting fresh air and sunlight are numerous. Try and get out as often as you can.
4.        Doing household chores – keeping the mind and body active is a good distraction and completing chores can add to endorphins, the feel-good hormone.
5.        Listening to music or the radio – the power of music is greatly underestimated. Try singing or dancing along to your favourite song and you’ll feel yourself relax by focusing on something else.

Anxiety UK offer a range of services, as do Mind UK, in which people can access counselling, CBT (Cognitive behaviour therapy) and other useful sources giving information about looking after your mental well being.

As someone who has suffered with anxiety since my teens, relying on medication to make me feel better and eventually finding CBT counselling was the best treatment for me, I have noticed the effect of the pandemic on my own mental health.

Finding the initial lockdown almost a relief to finally have to stop and slow down, from the mountain of work I seemed to face and constant social engagements and chores. As time went on though, I began to miss family and friends, and being apart from my boyfriend of two years was extremely difficult. The change in work circumstance (I work for a local theatre) meant that I had to adapt to working from home, in the spare room, then to furlough, then to set, shorter days.

Eventually back on furlough, my routine changed again. Yet it was always within the four walls of my house, with the exception being a weekly shop. I have found, with the gradually lifting of restrictions, that my anxiety has been more prevalent. Something as simple as going to the shops or meeting friends for a meal, has become much more complex. Do I have my mask? Will the restaurant be busy? Will my friends be waiting for me or will I have to wait on my own? Will the restaurant have plenty of hand sanitiser? Will everyone be social distancing? So much to think about! This applies to returning to the workplace too and travelling on public transport.

We all want to feel safe and secure, yet the world looks very different to before. Any routine as we know it has changed, we have had to let go of control to some extent and we all know that this can be extremely scary. According to figures by Mind and Anxiety UK, I’m not alone in these feelings.

Writer and Podcast creator Pandora Sykes recently described her feelings on the shift from life during and after lockdown, and what she calls ‘uncoupling from routine in order to learn better habits’ where she learnt that she could find a ‘personal and creative solace’. She shared extracts from an article for ‘We present’ in an Instagram post. This will almost certainly resonate with a lot of people in the UK right now as we move forward in a changed world.

“My friend once told me that there were two types of people in the world: those who want to move the world and those who move with the world. But I want to live in both camps; to submit but not surrender. A routine allowed me to impose myself on the day. It allowed me to think that I knew who I was – a person who could not tolerate unscheduled interruptions.

Instead, as we ease out of lockdown, like socially starved dust bunnies, I want the day to impose itself on me. I want to stand still in the springtime breeze, unburdened by time stamps and to-do lists with the knowledge that our capacity for renewal has nothing to do with routine.”

The full article was for ‘We Present’ and shares an interesting insight into the world of routine and how breaking this can free us. Read more here – https://wepresent.wetransfer.com/story/pandora-sykes-routine-essay/

What is most important, as we venture out of our new normal, is to ensure we’re taking good care of ourselves.

Mind suggest the following tips for taking care of your mental wellbeing and recognising when you might need extra support and guidance.

• –        Get practical support from organisations who can help – https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/coronavirus-useful-contacts/
• –        Talk to someone you trust – this may be a friend or family member – sharing experiences and how you feel can make you feel better.
• –        Try online peer support – https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/side-by-side-our-online-community/
• –        Give yourself time – Everyone has their own response to lockdown changes, and it’s important to take things at your own pace.
• –        Express your feelings creatively – You might find it helpful to express how you’re feeling with changes to restrictions. Try writing, drawing, or taking photographs to express how you’re feeling.
• –        Make choices to control things you can – Try to focus on the things you can change, rather than the things that are outside your control. For example, limiting the amount of news you read when you are struggling may help.
• –        Try self-care – look after your physical health, talk to friends and family, get as much natural light as you can and seek help if you need it.
• –        Seek help – Your local GP surgery is a good place to start. The NHS have links to a number of services that can help.

You could try venturing out with a friend or family member for a walk, so you’re not braving the outside world alone, allowing someone to support you can make a big difference to your confidence.

MIND UK also note that we should remember:

• –        There’s no ‘normal’ response to changes to lockdown. Your feelings may be affected by lots of things that are out of your control.
• –        Your feelings might change. You might feel one way one day, and another way the next. It might not feel logical.

In a featured story on MIND UK of Annabel, who suffers from social anxiety, she states

“don’t force yourself to start again immediately – it’s okay to need to take time to readjust. If lockdown has taught us anything, it’s that kindness and compassion are what makes us human.”

Great advice, as we’re all in this together. The best thing we can do is keep checking in on ourselves and each other and know the support is there should we need it.

Mind have created useful information and advice for dealing with coming out of lockdown. Read more here. Visit Anxiety UK or MIND for more information and people’s stories of dealing with anxiety and mental health issues.  The Mental Health Foundation is a useful resource too.