NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

Mind Matters with Kyle MacDonald: How to deal with lockdown boredom

Kyle MacDonald
By Kyle MacDonald
NZ Herald·
18 Sep, 2021 05:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Managing children's behaviour in lockdown is challenging. Photo / 123rf

Managing children's behaviour in lockdown is challenging. Photo / 123rf

ADVICE

Q: Any tips on dealing with the boredom of lockdown? I'm so over this.

A: It's not easy being in Auckland right now, as we head into week five of level 4, with likely a couple more weeks of level 3 to go. The same four walls. The same routine, losing track of the day, the time, everything becoming a bit of a grey blur.

However, while we might all be familiar with the idea of boredom - and many of us even more familiar right now - it can help to get a bit clearer as to what boredom actually is for you.

Boredom comes in many flavours, and as such may require different solutions.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Firstly, the feeling part can be a form of anxiety or uncomfortable tension. Sometimes when we talk about boredom what we're actually talking about is that for some of us it can be hard to just sit with our feelings and not distract - do nothing - because the feelings are painful or unfamiliar.

Boredom can also, at a behavioural level, mean not being able to engage in things, or not being to self-direct and engage in useful or enjoyable activities. A listless "don't feel like doing anything" type feeling that leads to inactivity.

Your experience may be a mix of both but either way, two general approaches can help.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

One, practise sitting with feelings and doing nothing. Generally we call this mindfulness. This can be challenging, because it may be that other feelings come to the surface - sadness, anger, fear - that may be hard to feel. But try to practise just feeling.

Getting better at being good company for yourself is a great skill to get better at - and what better time to practise?

Two, get active despite how you're feeling. Do something, anything, to get moving - and be kind to yourself while doing it. Don't criticise yourself into action - instead, validate the fact that it's hard to get moving and celebrate even the smallest task.

Q: Now my two primary school kids are home with us, they're really acting out, fighting with each other and refusing to listen to us and get stuck into schoolwork. What can I do to manage their behaviour?

A: Like most Auckland parents - myself included - I suspect you have a newfound appreciation for the work teachers do. Being parent, teacher and having to do your own work all at the same time is a stressful combination.

However, it's really important to remember this is also really hard for our little ones. What you're describing, as tempting as it can be to go there, isn't "naughtiness" - it's difficult emotions playing out as picking on each other.

Our job as parents, which is really hard at the moment, is to resist the temptation to go to punishment and reaction, but to instead take the lead on setting the emotional tone for the family. To make sure we start by regulating our own emotions and frustrations and model the behaviour we want.

This includes being able to talk about - not act out - the feelings of frustration, annoyance and sadness the lockdown enviably brings. Challenge yourself to be vulnerable.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Make space and time to check in and give them permission to talk about the hard feelings. And even though it can be anxiety-provoking - ease up on the expectations, especially if they're having a tough day. A few weeks of disrupted school work, more screen time or gaming isn't going to ruin their lives.

Prioritise connection and them feeling emotionally safe and, if you are going to push them on one thing, then make it physical activity and getting outside - walking, cycling or just playing on the lawn.

Making it through tough times by talking about feelings, being vulnerable and not being hard on ourselves is a valuable life lesson. Now is the time to learn it.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Lifestyle

LifestyleUpdated

Atlantic diet: The healthy meal plan taking on the Mediterranean diet

01 Jul 12:04 AM
Premium
Lifestyle

Advice: How can we get my ageing stepmother to cull her belongings?

01 Jul 12:00 AM
Lifestyle

‘Heart and soul’: Miss NZ finalist champions mental health journey

01 Jul 12:00 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Atlantic diet: The healthy meal plan taking on the Mediterranean diet

Atlantic diet: The healthy meal plan taking on the Mediterranean diet

01 Jul 12:04 AM

New research shows that potatoes, eggs and even pork could be the secret to a longer life.

Premium
Advice: How can we get my ageing stepmother to cull her belongings?

Advice: How can we get my ageing stepmother to cull her belongings?

01 Jul 12:00 AM
‘Heart and soul’: Miss NZ finalist champions mental health journey

‘Heart and soul’: Miss NZ finalist champions mental health journey

01 Jul 12:00 AM
Royal planner reveals Queen's dismay over Harry and Meghan wedding

Royal planner reveals Queen's dismay over Harry and Meghan wedding

30 Jun 11:43 PM
Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno
sponsored

Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP