While the lockdowns have definitely caused restrictions in movement and disrupted calendars, they have given positive opportunities for some members of society. We have seen many people take up sports and give more time to exercising, and some have used the time to cultivate their home gardens. Others are cooking more meals for the family, or have taken up a new hobby like painting or baking.
In a survey of more than 3,000 people conducted in Scotland in May last year, the researchers tried to find out what positive changes resulted from the lockdowns, and who were the groups of people that were able to make these changes. Another study was conducted in Australia among more than a thousand people to find out the same things. Here is a summary of the important results arising from these two studies.
In the survey conducted in Scotland, more than half of the people said that they were able to make positive changes. Some 83 percent reported that they became more appreciative of things that they usually took for granted. And 67 percent said that they had more time to do enjoyable things. Some 65 percent reported that they were able to spend more time in nature/outdoors. Another 62 percent said that they could give more attention to their personal health. And 54 percent agreed and said they did more physical activities, while 53 percent said they were able to spend more time with their partner or spouse.
For those surveyed in Australia, majority (70 percent) reported having experienced at least one positive effect of the pandemic. Some of these were: more time to spend with loved ones, greater flexibility at work, and appreciation of a less busy life.
I would venture to guess that a similar pattern may be observed in the Philippines. And although many members of our society definitely had a difficult time coping with the pandemic-related challenges (and continue to do so), there are also many positive changes that came out and are coming out of this experience.
The lockdowns have definitely afforded us the time and opportunity to take a closer look at our lives, our time, and the activities that we choose to spend our hours on. Many of us were able to determine what’s truly important and see things that we may have missed if the lockdowns didn’t happen because we would have been so busy with the usual things.
In a separate paper, many of those surveyed reported that they were able to maintain the changes made even after the lockdowns were eased. Some were even able to improve them further. This is very inspiring for the rest of us. And it definitely teaches us that something good can come out of a difficult situation as long as we recognize opportunities and grab the chance to make the best out of whatever situation presented to us.