How did 2020 work out for you?

[nursejackie]

Besides 2007 when my dad passed away, this has been the worst year of my life so far. I live alone and I'm a nurse so not only have I worked through the pandemic but during the first lockdown I didn't see anyone from my family for months. Then every one of my holidays abroad were cancelled, as well as many planned theatre trips. And now every time we think we're heading in the right direction and tentatively make plans again we take two steps back and life goes back to just work and isolation at home. I know I'm lucky to have a job still, and my health, but I work hard to do activities with my family and friends, have holidays and generally enjoy myself. Good riddance to 2020 I say.

 

[ronandannette]

2020 has been kind of surreal. My job thankfully and my husband's job is considered essential, so his job just increased in hours. My daughter had trouble initially adjusting to remote learning, though after a while she was able to figure out what was causing her problems.

The downside of 2020 for me is how much weight I've gained...my love of sweets is apparent and now I'll be spending 2021 trying to work off some of the "cheesecake belly".

This is about the best way to describe it...I didn't even vote in the poll because I can't really get my head around good-or-bad anymore. On the one hand, many things are terrible in ways we simply couldn't have even imagined 12 short months ago. On the other, when compared to the plight of so many others, we have been incredibly blessed and ought not dare breathe a word of complaint. The one thing I do know is that we've had to purposely lift our gaze off our own navels and keep perspective, and occasionally being able to lend a helping hand to someone in their own troubles has really helped us.

 

[Dznypal]

This year rated as one of the worst. The only good thing thst happened is we moved much better area downsized still mortgage free. We’re both retired so no income change. Well actually since I’m pool at a hospital I’ve been getting called a lot. But the bad out weighs the good. Which was 3 close family friends passed in a 6 week time. First my cousin that’s the same age as me. Then we lost my mom about 2 weeks later and my close friend her DH passed less then a month from my mom. None from Covid So this year ranks as my worst year

 

[MamaBelle4]

I can't really complain - we all kept our health. My mom was just hospitalized on Dec 19. and it made me realize how badly the year could have sucked. She was released the next day and diagnosed with COPD. But I kept thinking "what if". What if the last time I saw her was the last time I saw her? What am I going to tell my kids? Is my dad going to be okay without her? Are any of us? It was terrifying and I hated that I couldn't be with her, especially since Dec. 20 was her birthday.

And families across the country have been going through this for months and months and months on end. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

I voted 3 because it still did kind of suck. We didn't experience a loss of income, which is huge. But I have been virtually schooling my kids (K, 2nd grade, 4th grade and 6th grade) essentially since March while also caring for our 3 year old. That's rough. And not getting to see family regularly also is rough.

But I mostly voted 3 because it wasn't like I had an off year. Everyone has highs and lows. It was a collective "off year" and that is a heavy burden on people who are particularly empathetic. I have had food, I have had a roof over my head, I have had my health, but my heart still suffers with those who have not been so fortunate.

 

[DLgal]

I gave it a 4 because it was slightly worse than an average year, 100% due to mental health issues that have been aggravated by the pandemic, like my anxiety.

No one I know has gotten Covid. We have more money to our names than at any other time in our lives (combo of reduced expenses, stimulus money, and excellent investment performance). We are all introverts anyway, so not seeing family (especially at holiday times) has actually been really nice. No typical holiday time drama.

So, all in all, I can't complain too much. I just have honestly had enough of this distance learning/hybrid school year. And I'm tired of seeing our country fail at everything it tries to accomplish with regards to this virus.

 

[dez1978]

We've lost pretty much our entire business that we've worked 20 years to build. This year has been awful for the restaurant industry. So I'm gonna say 2..

 

[neverlandsky]

2 and unprecedented sums it up. No way in our minds did we think this year would go the way it went for every aspect of our lives.

 

[IWantMickeyToo]

I gave it a 3 because the stress level this year has been extremely high for me. With my 86-yo mom, 76-yo DH, and 8 yo granddaughter with Type 1 diabetes, I've tried to be very careful with masking, social distancing and sanitizing/hand washing but COVID found its ugly way into my household this month. Sigh. I got sick early-mid December and then my DH followed. I tested positive but couldn't bring him for a test because he got the extreme fatigue and could barely make it to the bathroom, never mind down the stairs and to the car. It's been over two weeks now and he still is very fatigued. I was freaked that he would need to go to the hospital but thankfully we've managed his care from home. My mom so far is unscathed and we haven't seen our grandkids since Thanskgiving so my granddaughter is fine. I know things could be much worse and for that I am grateful. I am eagerly looking forward to 2021, vaccines, and some semblance of better times to come.

 

[martikus]

Compared to those who are needing food or facing eviction I feel so fortunate. But I will say 5.

Loved all the extra family time with 14 year old. So many family games and laughs in a year
Many teens are pulling away.

But Lost my FIL to covid early on. He’s been living on borrowed time for 20+ years but still...very sad.

Lucky that husband and I both can work from home and our 14 year old can do his virtual learning remotely with little help from us needed.

I had a staff member arrested for something in personal life totally unexpected . Got furloughed so losing a month pay at a job that already doesn’t appreciate us.

Besides loss of vacation, I’m most sad that my son will miss all his middle school band competitions. And trip to universal. It’s a time that can’t be reclaimed.

Day before Christmas my boss told me he took a new job which was very unexpected. I hate change.

What a year. 2021 isn’t shaping up much better so I’m setting sights on 2022.

 

[jrmasm]

2

 

[Kitty 34]

2013, for me, was a horrible year. Several deaths and other situations made it a rough year. 2020, obviously wasn't too great.......not loving on my family and only seeing them maybe 3 or 4 times this entire year was sooooo not mentally fun.

 

[Diznotyzed]

We have been fortunate. We're recently retired, and the pandemic moved up the timeline of passing on our family home to the third generation. Our "when in town" basement apartment has turned out well, and we get to see our grandkids who now live "upstairs" regularly.

 

[E&Cmom]

I said 3 maybe closer to 4. It has definitely been a stressful year especially working in healthcare. I am thankful I don’t work in the hospital or LTC setting anymore as it would be a lot worse but it has been crazy at work. At least we have had no job loss even though DH had to take 6 weeks furlough over the summer.

My eldest is graduating from high school in 2021. I am sad that we haven’t been able to do the experiences so far that go along with it. Online university campus visits just isn’t the same.

Still our family have all been healthy and employed. Even though it has been a sucky year it it definitely has not been the worse. That would be 1993-1996 as that was seeing my mom diagnosed, suffer and die of ALS. I don’t think anything has come close to that for me.

 

[fly girl]

I gave it a 4.

All things considered, my family and extended family did ok through 2020. No deaths, did see job losses and paycuts though. Mentally it was trying for all of us at times, but overall we managed it well. It could have been much worse and we know it.

 

[JLTraveling]

This is about the best way to describe it...I didn't even vote in the poll because I can't really get my head around good-or-bad anymore. On the one hand, many things are terrible in ways we simply couldn't have even imagined 12 short months ago. On the other, when compared to the plight of so many others, we have been incredibly blessed and ought not dare breathe a word of complaint. The one thing I do know is that we've had to purposely lift our gaze off our own navels and keep perspective, and occasionally being able to lend a helping hand to someone in their own troubles has really helped us.

This sums it up really well for me too. It's been an awful year (though 2004-2005 were the worst, when I lost my mom, got divorced, and went through Hurricane Katrina back to back). But compared to all the suffering I see out there I know how blessed we are. I don't know. I'm just tired lol

 

[antmaril]

Well, 2020 has been a challenge. I lost one of my dearest friends (of almost 50 years) in February. My younger sister died in early March. Then, a worldwide pandemic. On Saturday morning my brother-in-law and his family woke up to the smoke alarms going off - the house was on fire! Then, yesterday, my best friend’s brother died of colon cancer. We lived next door to each other growing up and I have known him since I was three years old and he was six. 2020 needs to go.

On the bright side, my son started a serious relationship with a woman he works with. So, that is a good thing! And, everyone I am close to has been able to stay COVID free. I hope that continues into 2021.

 

[RangerPooh]

It hasn’t been too bad for us, but we’ve had our ups and downs.

Positives to 2020:
We are both are still employed, and continue to work from home. Working from home has allowed me to drop the kids off at school, something I never really had the ability to do. Plus my commute is really short these days We visited WDW (eventually). Last January my daughters BSA troop went snow tubing. It would end up being their last out of meeting activity until the end of July.

Downside to 2020:
Our best friends are attached to the navy and moved. They were our primary quaranteam until they moved this summer. Scouting hasn’t been as fun. DD BSA troop hasn’t met in person since March, and our boys Cub Scout dens alter between zoom and in person parking lot meetings. We’re back to zoom. My Girl Scout troop took a 9 month break before finally resuming, now we’re in zoom

Multiple canceled trips, but at least we did eventually make it to WDW. I feel bad for our daughters, their orchestra trips and competitions were canceled this spring. Marching band season was minimized, but no competitions. No winter guard competitions this winter. No elementary school to middle school promotion ceremony last spring.

A good friend and colleague of DHs died two weeks ago unexpectedly. Learned that my childhood best friend has been battling breast cancer and treatments since March.

Online school sucked for our younger three kids!!!!! Every ones grades dropped quarter one. Even though they returned to school for quarter two the damage had already been done.

 

[Owlpost23]

Worst year of my life. We had a loved one die of ovarian cancer, another one just got diagnosed with advanced cancer at the age of 47, and have struggled as small business owners. We had to lay off our employees when the state closed our business. That was really, really tough. DH had to work night shift most of 2020 because he lost his job of 25 years at the end of 2019 and then got rehired in another department. I'm living in a house with a first responder and an essential employee and I feel like my COVID exposure risk is high so I constantly worry about it. And we're trying to build a house, which has turned out to be much more expensive and is taking longer due to COVID. I think it's great that others are thriving. I'm not. My mental health is at an all time low.

Many hugs to you.You're still hanging in there.You have people you have never met sending you love and healing.Wishing you a wonderful and happier New Year.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

I don’t know whether to like posts or react with the sad face to most of these, so just know I’m celebrating the highs with you and sending virtual hugs for the lows.

Disboards, can we get a caring reaction in 2021? Pretty please!

 

[GreatLakes]

A little less than average. It had it's highs and lows like any year but the pandemic and the stress around that made it challenging. When all is said and done and we get back to normal I think we will look back at this year and concentrate on the good instead of the bad.