Relationships have taken a bit of a backseat during the pandemic. It is hardly surprising seeing as we have had to focus on not spreading a deadly disease to the people that we love. But now, as the world is opening up again, we have the option to see other people again. So what are we going to do? Here are some ideas about how you can get into the groove of being around people again and some ways to spend time together.
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If you are single
Let’s not lie to ourselves, being single during the lock downs must have been hard for some people. Being alone for that length of time must have been difficult for a lot of people, especially if you were cut off from friends and family. I know a few people who are happy in their own company who struggled with the extended time on their own. If you are one of those people, it must have been a huge relief when the lock downs ended. the big question is, how do you get back out there when there are still restrictions in place? This is a tough one because we want to be safe, we don’t want to spread diseases, and we want to respect other peoples needs. Obviously, it will be hard to meet people in the bar or nightclub right now, to start up new relationships but there is always the option of virtual meetups and dating sites. If you have used dating apps in the past, this should be easy enough. If you haven’t, you might want to be patient with yourself while you work out how this side of the dating world works.
If you are in a relationship
I was very lucky that I was in lock down with my husband and my kids. Although, we were not stuck in the house with each other because he was a front line worker and was out of the house every day. For us, it was a probably good thing because there is only so much time that you can spend cooped up with another person. However, on the flip side, it would have been nice to have some help with the four kids who were also stuck in the house too. Not gonna lie, my goal is to win the lottery so that both of us retire and be in the house together but that is a story for another time. A lot of people found that their relationships degraded very quickly and a shocking amount of people filed for divorce once they were free to leave the house again. I’m sure that dating sites and hook-up sites got plenty of attention in the aftermath. If you have managed to get out of the other side of lock down with your marriage intact, then you are lucky. Now is the chance to get out there and have date nights again. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, even just heading to the cinema and grabbing a bag of chips on the way home is a great night out.
Just friends
In the aftermath of the lock downs, a lot of people realised that they don’t like people and relationships are the last thing on their mind. On social media, there was a lot of questionable stuff posted. What was shocking was the amount of arguing and misinformation that was shared, the shouting matches, and the anger. For some people, they just had to take a step back. The people that they thought they knew turned out to be very different in the face of global disaster. It is kind of sad but at least we all know where we stand with each other. The emotional damage that has been caused by the shift in opinions will take a while to change as social circles are readjusted. Getting out and seeing people can be about more than hooking up and getting into new relationships. Meeting new people can come in many forms. For example, there are a lot of common interest groups that formed during the lock downs that could function in the real world, such as gaming or crafting. I found a lot of comfort and friendship in the cross stitch groups that appeared on Facebook. Not only did I get to share my cross stitch pieces with people who cared, but there was also plenty of conversation and advice about stitching too. If you took up any new hobbies during the lock downs, don’t give them up. Have a look around and see if there are any local groups that can support your hobby. And if there isn’t, you could start your own.