Returning to Community after Covid Lockdowns and Isolation

I wonder if you, like many people, thought that lockdown was the hard part, and that now that we are all free to resume our lives in the community, everything will be easy? Is it as simple as just winding the cogs to get back to our normal lives? Or perhaps we have underestimated the effects the pandemic and lockdown had, and still has, on us all. Whether you were part of the nationwide lockdown during the initial wave of COVID-19 in early 2020, or lived through the series of intense lockdown measures in Victoria, we have all been impacted in different ways by business and border closures, healthcare limitations, stay-at-home orders and restrictions to social gatherings.

The amputee community, like many, has been drastically affected. Some of us may have had an amputation and are working hard to make up for lost months of our rehabilitation and prosthetic journeys, while others may be re-establishing our health plans after avoiding doctors’ clinics for some time. These issues can cause added frustrations and distress. Many of us have also found that even though many social activities have recommenced, our capacity to participate has decreased and we might still be experiencing some ambivalence or isolation.

Here are some simple but useful tips that might help us adjust to the uncertainties of getting back to the new ‘changed normal.’

• Keep your expectations realistic - give yourself permission to feel anxious/uncertain, as uncertainty is a natural reaction to an unnatural experience
• Live your values – align your choices and activities with what is meaningful to you
• Find your balance – identify things that make you happy and fulfilled, and spend time consciously doing these things
• Attitude towards time – viewing time as precious can change the way you focus on relationships or make plans for the future
• Share what you have – if you are relatively healthy there can be a great reciprocal benefit in helping others who are more vulnerable
• Seek support – we all need help sometimes, and there are many formal and informal ways to connect - from a neighbour or friend, to a trained professional who can listen and offer some strategies

Remember that Limbs 4 Life have a range of resources to help you