Reconnecting with Friends after the Pandemic

Reconnecting with Friends after the Pandemic

Lockdowns made it difficult to maintain friendships. When you’re isolating at home, it makes it incredibly difficult to connect and keep in touch with your friends. However, now that restrictions are ending in England, you can look forward to reconnecting with friends once more. Below, we explore how you can rebuild these friendships and get back to normal.

• The switch to online socialising

Lockdowns limited our ability to interact with people outside of our household. But many friendship groups responded to this by socialising online. For some groups, this meant a weekly online pub quiz. Or for others, it meant taking time to arrange a video call with a close friend once a week. Meanwhile, bingo groups turned to online bingo games to socialise. This adaptability made it easier for people to fight over loneliness and survive repeated lockdowns during the pandemic.

• The toll on friendships

Nevertheless, the pandemic still took its toll on friendships. On a basic level, lockdowns left us with much less to talk about and people found there were fewer reasons to get in touch with their friends. On top of this, the rule of six in England meant that on rare social occasions, people would have to pick their friends wisely. This resulted in many people growing isolated and losing friends. Indeed, research suggests that many people subconsciously “pruned” their friendship group as they refocused on their values during lockdown.

• End of restrictions in England

However, the end of restrictions in England offers the chance for many people to reconnect with their friendship groups. Following several lockdowns and the rule of six, England has now dropped all social distancing rules. This means that you’re able to visit however many friends you want, whenever you want. While this can be a source of anxiety when you start socialising again, it also represents an exciting opportunity.

• How to start socialising again

Socialising again can be tricky following the pandemic. But there are strategies you can use to ease this process. The first thing to do is to reach out to your old friends and give them space. Try getting back in touch and seeing how they are before diving into new plans. You can also try making new friends by joining a class or a sports club – it’s always easier to connect when you have shared passions. Finally, always remember to tend to your friendships that have survived. Continue to see the friends you have kept in touch with and don’t take them for granted.

Reconnecting with friends following the pandemic can be hard. But by following the advice above, you should be ready to rebuild your social life.

| Guest Article.