Lessons from a Year in Lockdown

6 life lessons to remember when lockdown ends.

As of today, I’ve officially lived a full year in lockdown. It’s been quite the year of ups and downs with challenges I could have never imagined. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say it’s been an emotional rollercoaster, and even today it’s hard to say what the future holds.

I still remember the last day I went into work at the office. I didn’t think much of the busyness of the financial district as I picked up lunch from the concourse foodcourt before stepping back into a crowded elevator back up to the office on the 20th floor.

Later in the afternoon, I stood with my colleagues in the reception lobby as we watched a news announcement from our Prime Minister. The air felt thick with uncertainty as I packed up at the end of the day. In that moment, I had no idea it would have gone on for this long.

Now one year later, I feel like I’ve had to relearn how to live almost my whole life. Almost everything is different or at least feels different. In some ways good and some not so good. But if anything, it’s allow me to grow and face challenges, and I would say make me a better person for it.

So today, on my one year anniversary of lockdown, I thought I would share some of the life lessons I’ve learned over the last 365 days.

Life Lessons from a
Year in Lockdown

1. Live in the now

There is no day like today. Living in the now is probably one of the biggest life lessons I’ve learned. Don’t let your mind dwell on the past, or ruminate on the future. Being present and enjoying the moments your have right now are what will make you happy.

During the first few months of lockdown, I longed for the past where I could go out with my friends or travel on vacation. Or I’d spend time thinking of when things would go back to normal in the future.

But what I didn’t know was the time was this was a gift to me. In the coming months, my dog would pass and being home all the time allowed me to spent the most of what remaining time I could with her.

We had the best summer together, went on daily walks in the neighbourhood and spent every day together. I feel so lucky to have been able to spend all this time with her. And only wish I had been more present during this time instead of worrying about the past and the future.

2. Life is precious

If there’s one thing that COVID has taught us all, is how precious life is. Millions of lives have been loss from COVID. Along with the loss of my dog, our family had other significant losses as well. And this it’s really made me re-think my priorities and remember how precious life is.

It has been a reminder to appreciate the smaller things in life – the things I often take for granted. I’m so grateful for my family and friends. Being able to having phone calls with love ones, and sharing a laugh with friends over text. There are so many little moments that make life so worthwhile and precious.

3. It’s okay to be not okay

Some days are good and some days aren’t. And that’s okay. I had a lot of uncertain days in the beginning, and again when we went into lockdown for the second time.

And it’s okay not to know what the future holds, and it’s okay not to feel your best. Sometimes you just need ride through your emotions.

I remind myself that when times are tough, that these too will pass.

Having bad days doesn’t doesn’t mean you’re failing. And it doesn’t say anything about how things will be tomorrow. Try to find the positive and the good around you. And there will be better days again, and it’s okay to have bad days too.

4. Perspective is a beautiful thing

As cheesy as it is, is the glass half empty or half full expression is really quite true. How you look at the situation, really affects how you feel about it as well. 

We all have a choice in how we view the world. The truth is, it’s never the situation that’s at fault. It’s the way we choose to view it.

The funny thing about perspective is that it often comes in hindsight. But if you can learn how to look at situations objectively, you can find the beauty in life and live it in the moment.

5. Most problems only exist in your head

With the extra time on my hands, I’ll admit I spent a lot of time overthinking things and creating bigger problems out of things that were pretty minute.

Most problems are not real. They’re just projections of the mind, but it’s easy to get lost down this rabbit hole. These are challenging situations for sure, but they are not problems. They only become problems when your mind gets involved.

I’ve found that journalling and meditation has really helped me with this. And now I maintain both a daily practice of both to help me keep my mind in check.

6. What you think about yourself is most important

This was probably one of the most important lessons from lockdown I’ve learned. Being a blogger and content creator I often feel judged by my likes, following or comments people make. But spending more time alone in lockdown has taught me that what I think about myself is most important. It helped reduced the noise of what was going on around me and let me focus on me.

As I spent more time with myself, I realized I needed to love myself a whole lot more. I began create boundaries which allowed me to have more courage and confidence in myself. And at the end of the day I just liked myself a whole lot better.

More from lifestyle & wellness:

• 10 At-Home Off Screen Activities I’d Highly Recommend
• Why I Stopped Intermittent Fasting
• 7 Ways to Deal with Anxiety & Stress Naturally
• 5 Healthy Habits for Working from Home
• 12 Easy Things You Can Do Today Improve Your Health

I think we’ve all grown so much in this past year. It’s been such a year of change and new experiences. I’d love to hear the lessons from lockdown you’ve learned in the comments below!

XOXO,