The “structure” of my life fell apart during the pandemic. Did this happen to you? What did you do?

I was 27 when the pandemic started and I am 31 now. When I was in my 20s - I told myself that I am building good habits in my 20s that would last me a lifetime. I went to the office Monday through Thursday and was 1.5 miles away from my corporate job. I worked out 5-6 days a week, I had a morning and nighttime skincare routine, I meal prepped, had a bustling social life. I feel like I had it all together and I was really confident.

During the pandemic, I gained 30lbs, stopped working out, stopped caring about my skincare routine, and I eat out a few times a week. My social life is extremely rough and keeping friends has never been more difficult. I got a new job, but it’s about a 30-35 minute commute. I can’t move closer like I did with my previous job because it’s not the nicest part of town.

The positives to come out of the pandemic is that I graduated with my MBA and got an extremely high paying job, so I essentially never worry about money. I’m so grateful for that. I am also in the process of losing the weight (have lost 10lbs so far).

However, I wish I cared about myself. Cared enough to treat my body well, cared enough to do my skincare routine because it was something I loved, meal prep and cook for myself, and have the urge to go out and be social. I work from home most days and am in the office about once a week and I feel like the structure I built for myself has just broken down completely. It’s hard to motivate myself to go to the office because of the commute, but as I type this I realize it’s not terrible - I just have a mental blockage.

I feel like I lost my optimism about myself, my life, and how I view myself. I’ve lost the “zest.”

Has this happened to you? How did you rebuild structure? I’ve been in therapy for a while now, but this is something I have yet to conquer.