My Life Under Lockdown And Strategies For Surviving It

It’s mid-May 2020 as I write this, and the world is still in the grip of the coronavirus problem, so I thought I’d share my experiences on how it’s affecting me.

The short answer is, not very much.

But that doesn’t tell you anything really, so here’s a more detailed version.

Firstly, let’s talk about…

Self-Isolating

The truth is, the last time I went into the nearest town, which is about 12 miles away and only has around 6,000 inhabitants, was March 2007.

Since then, there have been precisely four occasions on which I have left the property – and each of those was to drive (or, actually, be driven, since a friend took me) about five miles up to the road to adopt one or two dogs from the local animal rescue, which we’ve supported since 2005.

But even then, those brief trips out were about five years ago.

So, living in relative isolation has been a way of life for me for a long time. (My late wife and I shared this desire to maintain our privacy and generally avoid the world at large. Since her death 16 months ago, I have found no reason to change my behaviour either.)

That meant the two of us lived and worked together, in the same room, 24 x 7 – and while I accept this might be a nightmare for many people, as they are no doubt discovering during this lockdown, it was the perfect situation for us.

I can well imagine this would cause no end of arguments with many couples, but for us, not a one.

And while I obviously miss her since her untimely death, I am still quite happy, most of the time, living by myself.

I do see a handful of people – mainly people who bring mail and packages, which happens anywhere from one to four days a week.

They are, fortunately, more than just delivery people – as I have got to know them, I count them as my friends too, and when they have the time, we talk about a variety of subjects, which makes up, to some extent, for not having my wife to talk to.

So, what does my life look like?

Well, now that I’m alone, I have tried to create a regular schedule, which I think is good both for me and my three dogs.

Generally, I prefer spontaneity to routine, but at the moment, it feels like routine is what I need – and I know it’s better for the dogs that way.

Life with my wife had a sort of routine, but only in the broadest possible sense – and we ate at weird times. Many days, she didn’t want dinner until well after midnight, which was too late for me so I didn’t eat at all.

Now that I’m by myself, I try to eat at least lunch and dinner every day, and at more sensible times.

After I’ve done the usual morning household chores and done my daily exercise, I try to get my work finished by 2:00 pm, which is when I break for lunch, and then during the afternoon, I like to kick back and relax.

I’ll watch a movie or TV show or two, I write my daily haiku, I read a bit, and I’ll deal with any emails that come in, via my phone, only getting my laptop back out if absolutely necessary.

I try to eat dinner around 8:00pm, while I watch another show, and then I do some more reading until it’s time to give my doggies their supper.

And then, as I drink my final cup of herbal tea for the day, I watch one more half-hour comedy show, and try to settle down to sleep by midnight (which is far preferable to the five to seven o’clock in the morning that used to be the case).

Overall, it feels much better than the previous routine, and it provides a structure that was sort of lacking.

That, to me, is one of the keys of being not only by yourself, but also of surviving (and enjoying) life in a lockdown type of situation.

I’ve never really been one for feeling bored because I enjoy my own company and have enough interests to keep me occupied, but having a routine that more or less fills your day means you aren’t wandering around unsure what to do with yourself.

The good news is that, with this lifestyle, I don’t have to worry about wearing a mask (which would make breathing even more difficult than it already is for me), because I almost never see anybody, and keeping six feet away from the few people I do see is not a problem either.

And there are very few reported cases of COVID-19 in this area anyway – not that I’m scared of the virus in the first place. (I have deliberately not shared much about this outbreak because it’s difficult to know what information is true and what isn’t. Even the basic numbers, such as the number of people infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and number of deaths actually caused by the virus, are likely inaccurate, which means anything else is pretty meaningless.)

Supplies

While I’m aware there have been shortages of many items, toilet paper being the most obvious example, I’m fortunate not to have been affected by most of this.

95% of what I buy is purchased online, and there have been a few items that have been harder to find than usual – but not so much as to cause a real problem.

The other 5% of stuff is bought for me by a friend, who does my grocery shopping once a week and brings it out to me. (I don’t have either a working car or a driver’s licence, even if I wanted to go out and leave my dogs by themselves, something they’ve never experienced since we adopted them.)

He has not had much problem either finding what I need, in most cases.

This has been helped, in part, because a lot of the items my late wife and I bought were purchased in bulk – that’s one of the side-effects of doing most of your shopping online, because it’s difficult to buy one can of soup or one toilet roll – you usually have to buy things by the case.

And in the case of food, my wife had some very bizarre dietary restrictions, so she’d try something new, eat it once, and then discover it caused her problems, so the result of all that is that there was a lot of food in the house when she died.

Even though it’s been over a year, and I’ve given a lot of the stuff I would not eat to friends, I’m still working my way through much of the food that she bought.

And as for toilet rolls, we had two more or less full cases of them – because, again, she bought one brand and she had a reaction to something in it, so she bought a different brand.

For most people, especially those with children, I can appreciate that trying to find necessary food and household items may be a challenge, not just because of availability but also because so many people have effectively lost their jobs and are struggling financially.

And if this current situation were to recur in future, I too may have issues because most of the stockpile left behind by my wife will be gone fairly soon.

Work

Speaking of jobs, I have worked for myself, from home, since 2006 or so, so there has been no job to lose.

The businesses I do run are 100% online, and I cannot really say that sales have slowed down, and the majority of what I sell is definitely not classified as essential items.

In fact, this month, sales are higher than usual, especially for this time of year, maybe because people are splurging a bit after receiving their stimulus cheques.

But again, if you have lost your job, through no fault of your own (or even the company you worked for), then I know this must be adding yet more stress to your life.

And the problem is that stress is one of many factors that can weaken your immune system – which is clearly not good because it renders you more susceptible to infection and disease. (Other things that can affect your immune system negatively include lack of sunlight and a reduced oxygen supply.)

Conclusion

In summary then, my personal situation and lifestyle choices have, for the most part, prepared me well for the response to the coronavirus issue – I have, as detailed above, not been affected to any significant degree at all, and I do consider myself incredibly fortunate in this regard.

Speaking to my friends, life outside my property doesn’t seem like it’s been that tough around here either, but I accept that in large cities such as Los Angeles and New York, this is not the case.

I know many would have found my lifestyle strange previously, and may even have laughed at it, but it would appear that it was excellent preparation for what is going on right now.

I’d like to say my current situation is the result of careful planning and preparation – but it’s not. I simply hit it lucky (since I’m not much of a planner).

But if you are used to being out and about, working, shopping, socializing, entertaining yourself, then life is clearly incredibly different and stressful right now.

It also probably helps that I’m predominantly an introvert, because I suspect, as a general rule, extraverts will be having a more difficult time adjusting to this situation.

Clearly, it will be hard or impractical for most people to adopt my chosen lifestyle, especially at short notice, and you can’t just flip a switch that changes you from being an extravert to an introvert, but given the current state, I would suggest:

1. Seeing this as an opportunity rather than a problem. Yes, I know life may be tough (or worse), and this may be easier said than done, but being angry or depressed about the situation is not going to be helpful. It’s said that people only grow when faced with obstacles, and by adopting a more positive approach, you may well come out of this situation a much stronger person. For example, you might realize that things you considered essential aren’t, or that household jobs and repairs you used to pay somebody to do are not actually that difficult.
2. Trying to create (or stick to) a routine. It’s likely you had one before all of this, and there’s no reason not to have one now. It may be different, but I still think it’s important to have some form of routine to follow.
3. Being prepared to eat foods you might not always choose. I eat mainly organic, and have done for years, and you may find this is all you can find. On the one hand, it is a bit more expensive, but on the other hand, it’s generally better for you in terms of health. You might also find you end up having to do more home-cooking, which again is not a bad thing (and you can get your children involved too) – which is something else I’ve had to do since we went organic.
4. Using the extra time you may have to your best advantage. Yes, it’s easy to sit on the sofa all day and watch television, but I would advocate finding other things to do, at least for some of the time. Not only is the mainstream media a large source of stress (through the fear they are whipping up), but it’s generally a passive activity (if that’s not too great an oxymoron). Instead, try reading more, playing games as a family, talking, learning new skills, writing, and getting whatever exercise you can within the confines of your home and yard. (Not specifically because of the virus, but I recently bought myself an exercise bike, which sits on my back porch.)
5. Starting to grow your own foods, where you can, because they will usually be better for you (not being processed) and more satisfying (because you know you grew them yourself). I am aware that some stores have deemed seeds to be non-essential, which makes no sense to me.
6. Making sure you get enough sleep – but not too much either. It may be tempting to spend additional time in bed, but in my experience, you can have too much sleep and feel worse for it. Having said that, when you consider that a large proportion of the population is not getting enough sleep, this might be a good time to find a more healthy sleep routine – and don’t be afraid to take a short nap in the afternoon if you want or need to.
7. Maybe learning meditation, to help you destress and relax. You could do this individually, or as a family if you want. Other options would be tai chi and yoga. And don’t forget there are benefits to silence too – although obviously not all day, every day.
8. If you are living with somebody else, trying to create your own personal spaces, for when tempers flare and you need to cool off. (This might be a good time to work on your relationship too, of course. You’ll find plenty of articles about this here.)
9. Making use of the technology you have available to stay in touch with friends and family (e.g. social media, services such as Zoom).
10. Considering ways to make money from home yourself – a subject which I cover here. This can provide financial independence as well as being much more satisfying than sitting in the cubicle farm for 40 hours a week.
11. Trying to get outside as much as you can, while staying as safe as you feel you need to be. Outdoors, you can get natural sunlight, which is great for topping up your vitamin D levels, and you can get exercise, even if it’s only jumping jacks in your back yard.
12. Being as prepared as you can be, without going overboard. For example, buying up every roll of toilet paper is not only unnecessary in most cases, but also selfish, while buying an additional can of soup when you go shopping to put aside, just in case, is common sense (not just now but in general).
13. If you do receive a stimulus cheque, trying to ensure you use that money wisely rather than blowing it on something that might provide instant gratification but which may not be helpful in the long run.
14. Learning more about health – real health, that is. Remember that a significant proportion of the media’s revenue comes from the pharmaceutical industry, and their goal is to increase profits, however they can. So, educate yourself about your body, disease and infections, natural health, and, while you’re at it, how to think critically (because a lot of what you hear on television does not stand up to scrutiny when you dig below the surface. For example, why are real doctors being censored while airtime is being given to people with no medical training?)

And lastly, of course, stay as safe as you feel you need to be (because it’s difficult to know what to do with so much conflicting information being published, which is why it’s vital to do some studying by yourself).