The Tameside Radio Breakfast presenter touches on an important subject that some of us can perhaps relate to as coronavirus lockdown restrictions ease.

Fifteen months after the first lockdown, the days of toilet roll panic buying and enthusiastic banana bread baking feel like a long time ago now! 

It’s been said that some people are suffering from post-lockdown anxiety. I can partly relate to this, as I’m certainly saying no to quite a few social invitations. 

I’ve enjoyed my time catching up on books, going to the cinema and looking at a fairly empty diary! 

We are all individuals, but I wanted to share part of a great article from Bupa this week that suggests six ways of managing feelings of anxiety as life steps up a gear.

1) Take it slow. Be assured you’re not the only one who’s worried about a return to the fast lane, and show yourself the same care and compassion that you would show a friend who’s struggling.

2) Speak to someone you trust. Open up about how you feel, and you’ll definitely feel more supported. The NHS, Samaritans and Mind are all ready to listen if there’s no-one in your circle you feel comfortable chatting to.

3) Plan ahead. If you don’t fancy a full return to the office, many employers are looking at a mixed approach, so it’s definitely worth having that conversation, assuming your job is one you can do remotely. If you do have to travel, maybe look at avoiding busy times, especially on public transport.

4) Focus on the positives. I had lunch al fresco in Harrogate with a friend last week, and it was so wonderful to catch up on 18 months’ worth of gossip and feel the sun on my face... apart from the slight case of sunburn on my arms!

5) Read trustworthy news sources for your information, and don’t go down a rabbit hole of spurious claims on Youtube and social media, which certainly won’t help your anxiety. Plain, simple information is the best solution.

6) Look after your well-being. Eat well, sleep plenty and try to take some exercise. As I start work at 6am, I’m still working on the sleep bit!

Elsewhere this week, I spotted several tweets over the weekend from chefs about ‘no-shows’ by people who book a meal out, and then simply don’t turn up. No phone call, no email... they just don’t appear. 

At a time when hospitality has been on a rollercoaster ride of the worst kind, through no fault of its own, this really is inexcusable behaviour. I accept that once in a blue moon, life will throw up an emergency situation, but most of the time it’s just laziness.

I am also a little baffled to read about people who have booked a UK break for the summer, and also a break in one of the countries currently on either the amber or red list. 

Apparently, the idea is they will just cancel the UK ‘staycation’ if the rules on travel change, but where does this leave small businesses in the UK? 

I don’t subscribe to the view that a foreign holiday is a right or entitlement I’m afraid; a lot of the whinges I’ve read about the lack of a beach holiday have strayed very much into the ‘first world problems’ camp.

It was brilliant to see Hyde Festival Theatre open this week to stage Sleeping Beauty (The Pantomime Movie), with socially distanced seating and other Covid safety measures in place. Grassroots arts venues like this have had a torrid time, and richly deserve our support. I hope that you’ll go to one of their shows if you get chance.

And I found myself watching three hours of football in the last seven days! I think that’s more than I’ve watched in the last 20 years. 

Sadly, the England-Scotland game was exceedingly slow and unexciting, leaving me wishing I’d flicked over to Great British Canal Journeys on the other side. Still, we’re through, and there’s a chance it might be coming home. Austria, my sweepstake team, is still clinging on too. I’m fully expecting they’ll get sliced up like a pizza by the Italians on Saturday night.

Have a great week, stay safe, and I’ll have a review of Fast and Furious 9 in next week’s paper, which I’m watching in IMAX on Friday. 

I’m expecting fast cars, growled one liners from Vin Diesel and a pretty wafer thin plot... to be honest, I’d be disappointed with anything else!

You can listen to Alex every weekday from 7am to 11am and on the 'Super Scoreboard' show on Saturdays from 3pm to 7pm, on Tameside Radio 103.6FM. 

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