When we try to cram too much into our day, we are in danger of falling into the pit of anxiety, depression or stress. For me, when I do, I endure the dreadful sense of self-loathing if I’ve not checked everything off on my to-do list.

But we have to remember that most of us don’t feel the same as we did pre COVID-19. The primal part of our brain, which alerts us to danger and stress, and the chemicals our brains produce to flee or fight, are designed to react in the moment – not a year or so on.

Yet, many of us are pretending that nothing’s changed – or we’re cramming the day with a bit more than our addled heads can really handle. You don’t need a full diary right now. You are doing yourselves good by having more time to rest.

We’re worrying about all manner of practical issues in one part of our brain, whilst crouching on alert mode in the other. Most of us will only feel safe once we’ve had the vaccination, and all of us have other fears for the future.

These opposing head-cramming emotions are why, globally, there is such a huge increase in poor mental health.

Accepting that our moods and outlooks have altered, because in our subconscious minds we’re on high alert, is crucial now as we face a new era of much change.

We need to be kind and realistic to ourselves and hang up our old superhero cloaks, reminding ourselves that it’s better to address and focus on one task at a time. We need to keep in mind that our attention spans have likely been impaired due to the host of worries that the pandemic has caused us all. We have changed and it’s largely out of our control.

If we humans were a field of fruit trees, then we have been cut down to our trunks – we need to work on rebuilding ourselves from our roots upwards in order to grow new branches and find new ways to adapt. This starts with the simple things we can control – good sleep hygiene, a balanced diet, regular exercise, etc.

Say goodbye to the days of cramming your days up – it was never sustainable anyway – and try to address tasks one at a time…it was the tortoise who won the race, not the hare!