A lot of people are now facing the reality of going back to work, school and everyday ‘normal’ life.

There are mixed feelings across the board with some people feeling a massive relief about returning to work, but others finding that their anxiety about going back into their previous environments is high.

There are things that you can do to help reduce anxiety about what is happening for you.  We cover this is our Stress and Anxiety course which you can access for free if you’re a Doncaster resident.

Many people are weighing up the pros and cons of going back to work and school and feeling anxious or worried about how this might affect them.

It is normal to have feelings of anxiety when changes happen, so what can we do about it?

1. Plan

Prepare for the things that you are worried about. SuYou can do this by writing a list of the concerns you have and how you might deal with them. Alternatively, you may wish to talk them over with a friend or family member who you find supportive.

This will help you to put things in place, such as buying or making a mask, finding out the new bus times or routes, checking the car, talking to your employer about your concerns…

2. Practice

There may be some things on your list that you could have a practice run. So it might be that you will have to take your child to school and this could be helped by travelling down to the school, having a look at the playground, talking about what the next steps are with your child and seeing what different things they may have to do – such as go in on their own or go in through a different entrance.

You can practice this more than once if you need it to become familiar.

3.  Support 

You may find, at first, that you need a bit of support to do some of these things. These might include, talking to your employer about starting after ‘rush hour’ or going back part time to start. You may find you want to check in with your school or nursery and ask them to give you a list of the things they will be needing from you such as a drop off time or pick up time. It might be someone you can talk to on the phone during the walk to work.

Support can be in many different guises. Think about what you need to help make this transition as comfortable as possible.

4.Remember

Remember the coping strategies that you use that help you. Whether that’s a Control Circle or how to slow your breathing. Access those things to help you as you make the changes you need to get back into a new routine.

5. Review

If you try the plan and think, “This isn’t working!” that’s ok! You can change your plan whenever you need to. Review, Tweak and Change. This is about how to help you best – not about making something set in stone.

6.Reward

Reward and Congratulate yourself when you try something. You’ve done something that you found difficult – even if it didn’t work – it took courage. Talk kindly to yourself and try again.

#youarenotalone

For more advice and guidance, please see the links below on the practicalities about going back to work.

Working Families Information on returning to work

Should you go back to work?

ACAS – How to Return to Work

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