Socialising
I saw this article this morning, from The Guardian, please ignore the drinking in the photo, apparently some people still think we need to drink to have fun! The article is about socialising again after lockdown, but I thought actually a lot of the principles from it apply to those of us who are beginning to socialise again after stopping drinking. I for one have quite enjoyed the simplicity of lockdown, but I know I am one of the few. I don’t miss socialising, or shopping, and I am more than happy to go between home and work and spend time with just my family. I can’t imagine life will change hugely for me when restrictions are lifted, except that the kids are going to need taking to activities again. I’m not anti-social but I do struggle with social situations, even with those I know well. I tend to over-think, not out of choice, it’s just the way my mind works. I can say something perfectly normal, but then feel like an idiot for saying it. I also don’t like the competitiveness that comes with some interactions, particularly those that revolve around my kids. I know other parents are proud of their children in the same way I am about mine, but I don’t understand why some need to make it a thing to advertise. I don’t like the one-up-man-ship so I tend to avoid situations like that, which can isolate me a little.
Reading this article from The Guardian was interesting, some of the bullet points being to remember that social skills don’t disappear when not used, although I’m sure I’m not the only one who may be a little rusty! The writer also suggests that social situations shouldn’t be avoided and confidence built gradually. The one that stood out most for me was to be aware of what you can tolerate. I think that applies to all of us and for the majority of the time. Whatever our circumstances, we shouldn’t feel the need to push ourselves into situations that don’t make us happy, or don’t help us. These occasions only result in us feeling like we’ve failed or got it wrong, and tend not to be in our best interests. We need to have reasonable expectations of ourselves, not pushing too much, or setting ourselves up to fail. We need to be kind to ourselves and remember where we are, while not comparing ourselves to everyone else. Who knows where those people are at, and how they’re feeling? I know that even those of us who look strong, can sometimes just be operating behind a carefully constructed mask. Our feelings can feel overwhelming, but often no one else knows how we are feeling, and how can they, unless we tell them? I’m not suggesting we walk into a venue and announce our feelings to the room, but maybe, perhaps you can have a wingman who you trust that you can talk to?
Possibly my favourite point is to celebrate small wins. I think that has to apply to all of us really, doesn’t it?
Just remember whatever you choose to do, or not do, to do the best for yourself. No one else knows quite how you feel, and how hard or easy something is for you.
Most of all, stay safe.
Much love,
Claire xx
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/mar/15/how-to-address-social-anxiety?fbclid=IwAR0g4kcDzEw_gEz514PrMp94NBHpJ0DjLrF2HKYYSg3a4nP3lbeFMuEwrGI
It’s my birthday!!
Today is different. I know I won’t have a drink today. I don’t have to think about whether I will or I won’t. I don’t have to have an argument with myself over how much I’ll drink. I won’t have to worry whether I’ll have one too many. I won’t wake up tomorrow with a headache. (Well I might, but it won’t be alcohol related). I will more than likely remember everything that happens today.
It’s a relief. I never in a million years thought I’d be able to say that, as someone who relied on wine for all the ‘good times’, not to have to even think about it is lovely.
I’ve always thought the simple things matter more than anything. So today, is about me and my family, well after I finish work at least. I don’t need anything else, and that is a really good feeling.
Have a lovely day!
Much love,
Claire xx
Freedom
Anyway, with the world opening up more, gradually we’ve been able to see a light at the end of the tunnel. Last week, I had a couple of errands to run on my day off and as the weather was nice, so instead of jumping in the car, so I could get there and back as quickly as possible, I decided to walk down with my little man Stanley. After a lovely walk that took far longer than I anticipated, we bought a little bit of lunch from the bakery and walked to the park.
I’ve avoided the park in recent months, just because a three year old is hard to keep contained, and not great at socially distancing with other children. We took him out of nursery when the schools closed down again, as he was our only link to the outside world, the only way our bubble could be broken, so he has been largely at home with us, at work with us, or with his grandma. He has a lot of attention, but not much from children his own age. We’ve decided when the schools go back, he will too, we don’t want him missing out when our other kids go back.
Anyway, the park was quiet, with only about three other families, and all the kids were of a similar age to Stanley. Without a word, he shot off, and made friends with two little girls. The three of them didn’t play together all the time, it was more him with one, and then him with the other, but it was so lovely to watch him playing and being so social after such a long time.
I’ve wondered how this pandemic and these lockdowns will affect the children all over the world. So much is different for them, they can’t see people they normally would or do things they’d normally do, whether they are small or much older. I worry too about teenagers, I’m not sure how they’ll explore the normal age appropriate ways of meeting people they like, not when they aren’t even allowed to hold hands. I can’t imagine how this generation of children will grow up and go into the world with so many safety precautions in the world keeping them apart. It’s certainly going to be very different for them than it was for most of us that are a little older.
It was so nice to sit in the park and watch the kids play. It was innocent and normal, in this world where there isn’t a lot of normal. I hope we’re coming through it, that the end is in sight, not only of the pandemic, but also with the better weather and leaving winter behind, everything just feels a little more positive. At least to me.
I think that while we need to keep our precautions in place to keep us safe, we also need to remember that we all need a bit of kindness, and freedom where we can.
Thanks for reading, take care of yourselves.
Claire x
Lockdown Drinking
I was reading this article recently, link included, about how lockdown is pushing women to drink. It’s interesting to read as I wondered if I just saw a problem that might not be there due to my past. Reading this, it seems it is a real possibility. I’ve seen family members laugh and joke about drinking over the first lockdown, not so much now, because to be honest, I had to unfollow a couple of social media accounts as it really bothered me. Comments like ‘Forget weight watchers, I’ll be needing AA after lockdown’, might be funny to some, but in honesty, they just make me feel uncomfortable.
It’s said that in the first lockdown, we all had to deal with how our lives were changing, not only due to the lockdown itself, but also down to the anxiety and stress from the unknown and the pandemic. Now, and as I write this we’re in our third lockdown here in the UK, it’s more common. We know we can’t go out, and everything is sort of normal. Some of us are still working, some of us are used to working at home. Some of us have our kids at home more than we used to, and of course, shopping in the high streets is a thing of the past. The thing is we’re used to it, we may not like it, but for the most part, we know there is little we can do about it, until lockdown is eased and so we get on with it.
For many of us, we find we have more time, whether that’s because we aren’t working, or because we aren’t commuting, it has affected all of our lives. For some of us self-medicating with alcohol seems like it’s becoming the go to choice. It seems to relieve stress and worry, gives us a way out of the monotony of life. Without our normal daily structure, it can feel like every night is a Friday or Saturday night, which can lead us to feel like it’s okay to have a extra drink or two. Of course, this isn’t a short time, like Christmas for example, it’s weeks if not months, and it’s very easy to form a habit over this sort of time period.
The problem is, at least as I see it, that we aren’t going to see the back of Covid-19 for a long time. It’s already been with us for a year, and there isn’t really an end in sight yet. We can choose to stay indoors, or form habits that in the long run aren’t really helpful to us, or we can choose to try to live in the best way we can, to do the best we can, because at some point, hopefully things will go back to something we recognise as normal.
Take care of yourselves and stay safe,
Claire xx
https://metro.co.uk/2021/01/30/in-focus-how-lockdown-is-pushing-women-towards-an-alcohol-crisis-13960279/amp/?__twitter_impression=true&fbclid=IwAR0CJCJGkF5nO8Y-ueK02dXxFEjB13G7sos-1Tl59hPuXyI-bEJG85kTioI
How True Is This?
How true is this?! 💖💖I saw it and just had to repost, thanks @clare_pooley 🙌👏 Addictive Personalities
I knew a long time ago, and others have noticed, that when I like something I tend to through myself into it wholeheartedly. Like drinking; I gave that my full attention and I got really good at it. Now I don’t do it at all. There have been other things too, but probably the main one that stands out over recent years is running. I started as a hobby, to try to calm my mind, to help me relax, and hopefully lose some baby weight. Instead, I started a competition with myself. It had to be further and further and faster and faster. On the days I had as rest days, which you are supposed to have, even as an elite athlete, I used to worry that I was being lazy. I would think that in those few hours that I didn’t run, that my fitness and speed were ebbing away. It was just another thing for me to worry about and I hated it.
I started to run for fun, I never anticipated doing anything more than enjoy it for myself, but less than a year after I started running I had done four half marathons. I just kept throwing challenge after challenge at myself. Once 5k was an achievement, then 10k, then a half marathon. I was up to 20 miles and hoping for a full marathon when Covid stopped me in my tracks.
Some habits aren’t so bad and I think in hindsight being obsessed with running is a lot better than being obsessed with wine, but I find it interesting how certain people get grabbed by that insatiable need for something when others can take it or leave it.
It’s thought that genes might have something to do with your personality. Studies that followed some children, focussing on those from addicted families who were adopted by those without addictions found that genes are responsible for about 50% of the chance of you becoming addicted. Other factors are also in play here though, for example friendship groups, education and the environment you grow up and live in, all contribute to the way you become.
Interestingly, it is also thought that those who experience anxiety and depression can be at a higher risk of experiencing an addictive personality. It is thought that those suffering from this type of personality can be very sensitive to emotional stress and struggle with certain situations, even if those situations don’t seem challenging to others. It is also suggested that those with an addictive personality jump from one addiction to another. I can see how this might happen, at least in my case, and to be honest, it is something I am aware of, although as we all know, addictions can creep up, seemingly out of nowhere.
I suppose it’s just something to be aware of really isn’t it? I assume these things have been affecting others for years, it’s just now we’re more able to be vocal about it, to talk to others and share our experiences. I know from the way I worry and how anxious I get, that it is easy to fall into the trap of setting up coping strategies to help me through. I also know that when I can’t employ these coping strategies for some reason, things get worse. I feel worse. So while it may be important to learn ways of coping and dealing with stress or difficult situations, we should be aware that we aren’t creating other habits that we come to rely on instead of our original habits.
I think like a lot of things, being aware, and not hiding from our problems helps here. We need to catch our problems before they become too big, whatever they are, and sometimes that means dealing with them head on, even when it’s scary to do so.
But, as always, whatever you’re doing, just remember to be kind to yourself. We’re all doing the best we can.
Thanks for reading,
Claire xx
