Ughh another national lockdown

Former Member

I cant make sentences right now.

Former Member

@Past User  Sending big hugs 🥰
Message me if you want a chat 
Alina

independent_

Yup - we’re in lockdown up here in Scotland too. 

How are you feeling about lockdown. It’s ok to struggle with it and we’re all here if you need anything  

Dancer

Lockdowns can be really hard for our mental health and our physical health which is why the government would only want to enforce them as a last resort. If you want to talk about anything we are here.

Former Member

Sending you lots of hugs, we are all here for you and care about you

Emma_

Hey just popping in to say its pretty crappy atm! It might feel pretty confusing or frustrating especially when the government keep changing things.

But we are all in this together now *pretends to be part of the High School Musical cast* and we'll get through it each day at a time! 

Sending big hugs to anyone struggling

Dancer

I completely agree with Emma. Yes it would be awesome to be part of the cast of High School Musical. In year 8 I watched High School Musical and it was amazing!

Dancer

JustV

Adding to what everyone else has already said, I wonder if it might be useful to provide a source for the claim "lockdowns don't work, they cause far more devastation" @Past User?

It's totally fine to have these conversations and debate the pros and cons of lockdowns, and making sure we have sources for these sorts of claims helps avoid the spread of misinformation.  

Lockdowns can be crappy - there's no denying that. Right now though, it feels worth bearing in mind that cases are absolutely exploding in the UK and hospitals are becoming overwhelmed. In situations like this, a lockdown doesn't only stop the spread of the virus, but it also makes sure hospitals are available for non-COVID patients who need treatment. For example, I had an x-ray booked for early this month, but it was cancelled without a rebooking because hospitals are so full here.

Here's a snippet from this Metro article, published Tuesday:

But, speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk, [Professor Naismith, the director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute] explained: ‘Based on trends to date, it is very possible the UK hospital admissions will reach or even exceed 5,000 a day. I don’t think that is sustainable for any long period.

‘A short peak of 5,000 will be incredibly hard, however further increases or even a sustained 5,000 a day admission will most likely require the NHS to triage.’

Metro.co.uk is aware of some Covid patients already being treated by NHS staff at home.

[Professor Naismith] said 5,000 daily admissions would likely mean all non-emergency procedures being cancelled, but felt lockdown offered some hope of eventually bringing admissions under control.

There's definitely a conversation to be had around the negative impacts of lockdowns - they're obviously not solely a good thing - but it's good to make sure we're doing that with data.

Former Member

I have to say, I can see an argument here for both sides, whilst I can see the importance of having a lockdown as @Mike has stated, I also think it is important to acknowledge and validate some of the feelings and points @Past User has made. 

There's definitely a conversation to be had around the negative impacts of lockdowns - they're obviously not solely a good thing - but it's good to make sure we're doing that with data

The Office for National Statistics found that between March to November 2020, people's satisfaction, worthwhileness and happiness levels decreased, and their anxiety levels increased. This a pretty clear indication that lockdowns do in fact play a role in our mental well-being and hence, we can see an impact on "depression" and "suicide" 

They also report that "nearly half (47%) of adults in England reported that their well-being was being affected (for example, boredom, loneliness, anxiety and stress) by the coronavirus pandemic. This is a similar percentage to those with fewer restrictions in tier 1 (50%) two weeks ago, and it is a lower percentage than those in tiers 2 and 3 (53% and 57% respectively)." which I believe paints a pretty clear picture on the effects of lockdown on one's mental health and well-being.

On the note of "millions jobless", the BBC reported unemployment issues had increased to 4.9% during August - October, meaning that 1.69 million people were unemployed. We can't ignore the impact that lockdown has on people's jobs, particularly those who work or own a small/independent business. To ignore this would be to dismiss all of those in the local community struggling to stay afloat in the new economic world. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52660591

Whilst I agree with @Mike that lockdowns do work, I don't want to ignore the fact that they "they cause far more devastation" - I do however, agree with this in a way. Lockdown does create a lot of devastation. Whilst we are keeping infection rates lower and hospital admissions to a minimum, lockdown causes many devastations elsewhere in our lives. We are saving lives by going into lockdown and helping the NHS to manage but we can't forget about the people who aren't managing at home from one or more of the above points. I think this is a situation where you have to weigh up both sides of the argument and ultimately saving lives for me is the winner BUT I'm not going to ignore the truth in the impacts lockdown can have. 

@Past User It sounds like this lockdown has hit you hard, and I'm sending you hugs  

I cant make sentences right now.

I'm wondering how you're feeling now? We've been in the new lockdown for a few days and so I'm curious if your thoughts around this have changed in anyway? Please remember we're always here if you need a chat and your feelings are always valid  
 

Former Member

Sending hugs to everyone. Lockdown is so hard. I like to find things to distract me, starting a new hobby or a new TV show. I find it helps to find something to do that makes you excited to be able to have time to do it. 

I personally think that a lockdown was needed now. From stats from the hospital I work at:

In September there were 3 people in hospital with coronavirus 0 of them in ICU. last week there were 130 people in hospital with COVID, 11 of those in ICU. For reference the hospital has around 600 beds. 

So although it’s hard I think going into lockdown is the right decision for now. Hopefully with the lockdown the cases can decrease to what they were in September. And with the vaccine coming in as well hopefully we can work to keep the cases down after lockdown. However I agree with @Eleanor and @Past User that lockdowns can have a negative impact on people wellbeing. 

 

How are you finding it so far @Past User, have you been finding thing to do to keep you busy?