Michael's Story

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For the many weeks of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, and for periods of time when working from the office was risky, I would work at home. I found it easier to work from home because I didn’t have to drive to work, and because I found it easier to concentrate on my work due to home being quieter than the office.

Best of all for me was having my husband at home too, him working in his office and me working at the dining room table at the other end of our small home. During the day I’d take him snacks and meals to help him through his long days and endless Zoom meetings. I loved being there for him, helping him navigate this psychologically challenging period. I knew his job had become exceedingly challenging
due to the pandemic, and this was taking a huge toll on his mental health.

Sadly Gregory’s mental health gave out during the pandemic and he ended up leaving his job, and needing psychiatric care. There were times when we could see each other when he was at his clinic, but at one stage it was not even possible to see him as their COVID-19 rules prevented contact with the outside world. That was hard for both of us.

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Gregory's Story

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The events of the last few years have had a significant impact on my life, COVID-19 enabled me to use all my leadership skills to guide my work place through a very difficult time, the lockdowns meant I needed to adjust the way I work and how we would be able to support our clients. However, the stress I was under meant I faced some mental health issues, this upended my life. I left my job, needed to have treatment in a hospital, taking me away from Michael and my family. Once the lockdowns ended we slowly started to get back to normal, it took a long time for us to reconnect with the community.