LIVES
Tick tock
by Sarah Collins
Mindful life
Whether I’m walking to the shops or running for the train or getting into bed at the end of the day, Iam haunted by a single ominous thought: you are running out of time. My birthday is soon, and all I can think about is how much older Iam than I feel. The age Iam about to turn, 28, fills me with a visceral sense of horror and dread.
The fact that I ruminate on my age quite so repetitively may be asymptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder. And I’m also aware that this is a common feeling for many, if not most, people. Nearly all of us hit an age after which getting older feels surreal, a travesty, fundamentally wrong. But I can’t help but wonder if my worries have been exacerbated by the pandemic, and whether many of us are only just beginning to feel the implications of Covid-19.