something I've been thinking about a lot recently is how the mitigation strategies that the gov/most white collar workplaces have put in place during the pandemic just... aren't understanding the real crux of the issue. and that millions of workers are suffering even more for it.

like yes, some companies have lowered targets and reframed roles (and lots haven't even done that), but the bottom line expectation is that employees show up within rigid hours, answer endless emails, be 'present' in daily zooms, put a professional face on

and generally spend energy doing tasks that feel increasingly more pointless and impossible as the days/weeks go on. it is truly depressing to ONLY have work, and for work to carry on when nothing else is. I really do not think most management teams understand the fallout

that this kind of trauma is having, and will have. there is never any real time or space to rest, because how can we distract ourselves? what can we do? where can we go? the mere absence of work on a day off doesn't inherently make that day fun or relaxing - how can we recharge?

I don't really know what the answer is, and I'm very aware I'm speaking from a relatively privileged position as it is - so many more people are dealing with even worse situations, and none of us have an end in sight (and when the end does come, what then?)

(I have a horrible feeling that when this IS all over, and things are as normal as they'll get for the foreseeable, we'll just be expected to jump straight back into pre-pandemic levels of productivity and "make up for lost time" and keep even more plates spinning.)

but like... where is the mental health support? where is the pastoral care? where is the understanding that we aren't machines, that we can't just 'switch off' the rest of the world between the hours of 9 and 5? where is the compassion and empathy, where are the allowances?

how do we make sure enough of us even reach the promised light at the end of the tunnel, let alone stay sane and employed *after* we get there?

I genuinely feel like I'm losing my mind at the same time as being bored out of it, and that juxtaposition is...fucking wild!