Although a pandemic is not a reason to panic and give up on your aspirations, plans and beliefs, yet there are certain changes that almost each one of us had to accept, even if it happened against our will. And apart from the obvious restrictions that were introduced to slow the spread of infection and reduce the burden on health systems, like prohibition of meetings in public places, traveling abroad, or the advice of staying at home whenever possible, there are still some things that have also changed within ourselves and those that Covid-19 influenced.
New type of loneliness
The forced distance changed the way our relations are built: in a situation of isolation, many familiar things simply stopped working, became inaccessible, which, in turn, made us more vulnerable. There was no longer an opportunity to meet with friends, acquaintances or colleagues, we could even hardly change our everyday environment. There was also no way to deal with stress in the usual ways – to go to the gym and take out all the negative energy on the treadmill.
And many psychologists are convinced that being in such a situation, a person can experience a range of different emotions, the most common of which are fear and anxiety. First of all, this is caused by worrying for our own and for our loved ones health. This also includes anger and annoyance for the inability to leave the house and lead a normal life. And, of course, boredom and loneliness, familiar to many who stayed at home for a long time on sick leave, when movies and books slowly become equally boring.
Of course, the great variety of Florida dating sites or social media make it easier to stay at home alone, but they are unlikely to be able to solve the problem completely.
New attitude towards our bodies
The epidemic and self-isolation also affected the way we interact with the body: wash our hands more often, after coming from the street, avoid touching our face, sneeze into an elbow – this is taught even at the official level. These rules have an unexpected side effect: doctors around the world report a decrease in the number of cases of intestinal infections and dysentery.
Many also began to listen more attentively to any bodily symptoms, fearing to identify in each of them the manifestation of the virus. On the one hand, there are many advantages, an attentive outlook on health is something new for people, who are used to the “hurt and pass” approach, and on the other, attentive listening to oneself incredibly shakes the already high level of anxiety, created by all the negative events now.
New etiquette
The pandemic has changed the rules of etiquette and Covid-19 influenced in great way. Now, in the times of COVID-19, when we meet we try not to touch each other and keep our distance in public places. Having dates with anyone now resambles dating a muslim woman : no kisssing, no touching, no hugging allowed. And while all of these measures are good for our personal boundaries, the lack of even such simple gestures as shaking hands when greeting can become a severe blow to successful communication, since we’ve all used to associate them with goodwill. Moreover, usually people have a need to congratulate each other not only with words, but also with some kind of gestures. Inability to do it also leads to certain discomfort and negative feelings.
Not only shaking hands can confuse us now, but, say, wearing a mask. Since they hide facial expressions, they cause more tension in communication between people. Oftentimes it’s impossible to read a person’s mood from their eyes only. Besides, masks muffle the sound, and as a result people do not hear well, ask each other once again, and get annoyed by all these unnecessary actions in communication.
