What to expect as you return to the office

(Representational image) Even those among us who are happy to return to the office need to become accustomed to some things again - like the daily commute. (Image: True Agency via Unspalsh)

With organisations reopening their offices, many of us are looking forward to returning (or at least partially returning) to the routine that we sorely missed in the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet, it isn’t unusual to feel a tad apprehensive as we begin this new phase of our career, and indeed our lives.

Mumbai-based therapist Hvovi Bhagwagar puts the apprehension down to the constant state of uncertainty in which we’ve been living over the last 18 months. “By the end of 2020, most of us were fairly confident that the pandemic was largely behind us. The second wave debunked that myth very quickly,” she explains. “Ever since we’ve been going through phases when things open for a few months and then shut down soon after. So, even as we may be looking forward to resuming our old routine, we’re also afraid that it may not last.”

She compares our situation to that of prisoners about to be released. “When you’ve lived in isolation, in a parallel universe that has a different set of rules from the outside world, you’re going to be apprehensive of stepping back into it, no matter how much you’re looking forward to it,” she says.

So, what can you expect as you return to the office?

1. You’ll likely be physically exhausted

Unless your offices are around the corner from home, the commute is likely going to take its toll on you. It doesn’t matter if you’ve taken an Uber or have travelled in the comfort of your personal air-conditioned car. Just the physical act of waking up, getting dressed, and going to the office will drain you out.

The reasons for this have been in front of us all along, Bhagwagar says. “(During WFH)... we stayed up late, got up late, and didn’t take care of our health,” she says. She also points out that even though we enjoy being in others’ company, the act of socialising can be, somewhat paradoxically, mentally and physically draining.

She says that the first step in remedying this is to take back control of your day, eat healthy, exercise and go for that health check-up you’ve been putting off.

2. Things won’t be going back to the way they were

Truth is, no matter what we tell ourselves, there’s no switch that can make things go back to how they were pre-pandemic. As Stewart Butterfield, CEO and co-founder , Slack, pointed out in an interview, “We all know that work will never be the same, even if we don’t yet know all the ways in which it will be different.”

The crowded streets and packed buses you pass on your way to work may give you the sense that it’s business as usual, but you need only to step into your offices to realise the impact of the pandemic. You’ll be surrounded by fewer colleagues, the coffee machine and water cooler may be out of bounds, common areas like food court will be empty on a Friday evening; these are, of course, little things but they serve to remind you that things aren’t back to the way they used to be. “It doesn’t feel the same. It (…) looks surreal,” Egis India MD Sandeep Gulati told the Economic Times about his experience of returning to work.

For a greater part of the last two years, we’ve prayed for things to return to ‘normal’. Turns out, surreal is the closest we can get to normal right now.

3. You’ll likely experience anxiety

When my wife began going to office again, she was anxious about getting into an Uber, and interacting face-to-face with colleagues she hadn't met since the lockdown. The anxiety had a trickle-down effect on me too as I’d look out for even the tiniest Covid-19 symptoms. A single sneeze would make us wonder if we’d contracted the virus, a mild case of body ache would send us down a spiral. Our doctors and therapists helped us navigate those initial weeks of exposing ourselves to the Covid-infected world. We ensured that we took all precautions, even increased our medical insurance cover, and began with incremental changes. It’s been a couple of months now and while we haven’t let our guard completely down, we’re less anxious about, say, getting into a cab or that stray sneeze.

4. You’ll feel overwhelmed

The last two years have been unprecedented. The relentlessness of it all has likely taken its toll on you without you having realised it. If you’ve been fortunate to have had a job throughout the pandemic or not lost a loved one, acknowledge that privilege. Find ways to help those less fortunate than you, but don’t also dismiss the trauma you’ve felt yourself. Just as you acknowledge your privilege, acknowledge your trauma too. Talk to friends, yes, but also seek professional help.