Editor's note: Haider Rifaat is a features writer for OK! Pakistan, an international edition of OK! Magazine. He is also a writer for Arabian Moda and South China Morning Post and serves as the creator and host of Pakistan's first web talk show – The Haider Rifaat Show. The article reflects the author's views and not necessarily those of CGTN.

While some countries continue to navigate through the COVID-19 health crisis, others are gradually returning to normalcy, thanks to robust vaccination efforts. For more than a year, families at large disconnected from the outside world began wearing masks and made a conscious effort to practice socially distancing to avoid contracting the virus.

During such unprecedented times, social interaction was reduced to minimal eye contact, tiresome video meetings and phone calls. Infections aside, the pandemic seeped into our social networks and changed the way we communicated with one another. As the world returns to some form of normalcy, in-person interaction is becoming increasingly difficult.

It is even harder for introverted, shy individuals to interact with others following more than a year of staying indoors. The pandemic seemed to be a safe haven for them. However, a post-COVID-19 world would require them to make additional effort to readjust their social behaviors.

Social awkwardness is bound to follow once the pandemic subsides entirely; hence, it is important to learn the art of resocialization while we can during a pandemic. This would eventually help us make a smoother, easier transition going forward.

First, we should recognize that these are testing times for all of us. This realization would make the readjustment process a lot easier. People would feel less isolated, knowing that millions around the world are experiencing personal and professional hardships.

It is equally important to unlearn certain "pandemic habits." For instance, meeting friends in small gatherings. Similarly, it is wise to outgrow a sluggish pandemic routine. Make time to reconnect with your community. Get involved in book clubs, nearby events, yoga classes and other recreational activities that would get your mind off things and remind you of pre-COVID-19 times. Recall and engage in all possible pre-pandemic activities as long as they are free from COVID-19 infection risk. These would be pathways for you to learn how to socialize better.

These steps may seem too radical for some introverts or individuals experiencing severe social anxiety, but they can always take smaller, progressive steps to reengage with others. For example, having a casual conversation with a next-door neighbor over coffee is a good way to reconnect. Inviting a friend over for dinner also seems like an easy starting point, especially if you are not up to the idea of leaving home so soon. Even visiting grocery stores or local supermarkets alone or with a close friend would be the perfect escape from the pandemic routine. Repeating these activities would make the resocialization process a lot easier.

If, under exceptional circumstances, resocialization becomes a pressing challenge, confiding in close family members or counselors could make things better. However, individual efforts count, and interpersonal relationships matter. Therefore, people should try and work on their resocialization independently without requiring the need to depend on others long-term.

The pandemic temporarily jarred all of us. It affected almost all areas of our lives and tested us to the core. While returning to our old ways of socializing may not be an easy task, it is important that we imagine the world as it was more than 15 months ago. We need to collectively perceive the future with optimism and hope. It is critical that we realize that the pandemic spared no one. 

Everyone experienced their share of personal and professional challenges. Communication issues happen to be one part of a broader problem affecting all of us on varying levels. Lacking the courage to socialize is more of a natural process we will collectively outgrow with time.

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