Pandemic Math: Calculating For Compassion & Congruence in the Still Coviding World

T = (B × E) / R

“I’m stuck in quicksand”…

“I’m driving a bumper car instead of a race car”…

“I’m in a time-warp”…

“Why does everything take so long and feel ten times harder than before?”

The Paradoxical Dilemma

I’ve struggled to find a way to communicate to others what life feels like in our Still Coviding world. Part of the communication challenge is the paradoxical nature of time feeling slower than I’ve felt while energy and time seem to be in shorter supply than ever.

Five years into living in this seemingly distorted reality, I no longer try to explain it to others.

However, my recent frustration with the SLOW and exhausting development of a meaningful project (that pre-pan would have been done a long time ago) caused me to realize that I need a better explanation for myself.

I can’t change our circumstances, but what if I could devise a consistent and reliable way to reorient my sense of time itself AND the constraints our family faces in order to access the compassion, patience, and congruence our lifestyle demands?

I’ve approached similar concepts in my thinking and writing before. But I’ve never focused explicitly on my perception of time and its incredible power over how I see myself, others, and the world.

We construct the experience of time in our minds… Time can be a friend, but it can also be an enemy. The trick is to harness it, whether at home, at work, or even in social policy, and to work in line with our conception of time. Time perception matters because it is the experience of time that roots us in our mental reality. Time is not only at the heart of the way we organize life, but the way we experience it.”-Claudia Hammond, Time Warped: Unlocking the Mysteries of Time Perception.

Defining the Problem

I’ve heard it said that “Time is Emotion.” In other words, the meaning we give something in our life defines how we experience the length/time of an event. The experience of infamous “flow states” can make it feel like time is standing still. When they’re over, we rarely experience them as having moved slowly- they stand in a unique and singular place in our memories and how we see our lives. Communicating this with words is impossible, but we all know when we’ve felt it.

Those experiences have been almost entirely missing for me since 2020.

While that’s understandable given the exponential increase in demands, the bigger problem for me has boiled down to the meaning I’ve been giving to the slower, more exhausting nature of how my ability to act and move in the world has dramatically changed. Let’s say that while there have certainly been magical moments, my overall perception of personal progress and my capacity to create change hasn’t been positive.

Digging into this thinking led me down several fascinating rabbit holes around “mind time” vs. “clock time.” If you want to dig in deeper, check out this video, which reveals some fascinating insights into the neuroscience of time (including the fact that we have multiple clocks running in our brains, and no one quite understands fully yet how it all comes together in our consciousness).

While I find time in all its endless capacities fascinating, my primary interest is learning how to reorient my sense of time to be congruent with what’s actually available in my life and the world.  

What follows is a collaboration between my husband and me, my childhood best friend and math Teacher extraordinaire, and ChatGPT.

Three primary factors are at play in determining a new calculation/equation (and many more sub-factors are nested under each).

Time’s Perception Shift:

• Living in a pandemic-informed way elongates every task (e.g., planning safe activities, navigating social dynamics, etc.)

• The weight of added mental calculations intensifies the sense of time dragging.

Energy Expenditure Spike:

• Even seemingly small tasks require outsized effort.

• Chronic stress depletes energy reserves faster than they can be replenished.

• Multiple factors create a compounding effect of fatigue/stress, etc.

·Impact of Prioritizing Functional/Survival/Management Tasks:

• We have had to learn a lot of new content, seek knowledge that is not widely available, and work incredibly hard to procure it (including funding, storing, tracking, and using mitigation tools).

• As a result, we have limited bandwidth and space in our schedules for hobbies, relaxation, or rest. These activities enable us to achieve flow states and/or a strong sense of presence. The absence of these experiences adds to the perception that there’s "never enough time."

I believe in the power of “name it to tame it” to create separation and the capacity to exert control over something challenging. In this case, calling the combined impact of these factors “Pandemic Math” resonates with me for several reasons—sadly, one of them is that the “next one” seems to be growing increasingly closer to our timeline.

Equally important is the neutral nature of “math” as something we can usually solve or, at the very least, use to understand or define something better.

The Pandemic Math Equation:

T = (B × E) / R

T = Time required to complete a task (in perceived units, often feels like hours).

B = Baseline time the task would have taken pre-pandemic.

E = Exponential complexity factor/energy multiplier due to additional effort, precautions/disruptions, and mental load.

This could range from 1.5x to 5x, depending on complexity.

For example, Getting groceries safely might have an E of 3, while social event planning with testing and mitigations could be 4 or 5.

R = Recovery factor based on your current energy and emotional reserves.

• This could range from .5 to 1, where 1 is the full capacity of energy and reserves*

• Higher reserves (e.g., a restful day prior) would lead to a larger R, reducing the perceived time required.

• Smaller R (e.g., from burnout or lack of sleep or additional family challenges) increases T.

Example Calculation:

Task: Grocery Shopping Pre-Pandemic

· B (Baseline): 1 hour

· E (Energy Multiplier): 2.5 (masking, avoiding crowds, stress)

· R (Recovery Factor): 0.8 (low reserves due to chronic stress)

T = (1 × 2.5) / 0.8 = 3.125 hours (perceived time)

So, what once felt like a 1-hour task now feels like it takes over 3 hours due to the additional effort and diminished capacity.

The view from an effort perspective is equally compelling.

Alternative Version (Effort View):

If you want to calculate Effort (E) instead of time:

E = (T × R) / B

Task Example:

If grocery shopping feels like it takes 3 hours (T = 3), and your recovery factor is 0.8 (low reserves), the baseline is still 1 hour:

E = (3 × 0.8) / 1 = 2.4

This indicates the effort/energy required is 2.4x greater than normal.

Using “Pandemic Math” to Generate Self-Compassion and Create Congruence between Capacity and Constraints

Combining the perceived time (t) and the effort or energy required (e) concepts into a realistic planning tool enables you to use this math as a framework to generate self-compassion and create congruence.

Here's how:

The Combined Framework:

1.    Recognize the Effort Multiplier

• Use the equation t = b × e / r to estimate the perceived time (t) and effort needed.

• Example: If a task like "planning a grocery trip" took 1 hour pre-pandemic (b = 1) but now feels 3x harder (e = 3) with 80% energy (r = 0.8), it’ll feel like:
  t ≈ 3.75 hours (perceived time to complete).

2.    Estimate the Energy Required

• Rearrange the equation to calculate energy or effort:
  e = (t × r) / b

• Using the same task, if it feels like 3.75 hours and you have 80% capacity, you can see you’re spending 3x more effort than baseline.

3.    Plan Realistically

• Accept that fewer tasks may fit into your day.

• Break larger tasks into smaller chunks to distribute effort over time.

• Build in recovery time after high-effort tasks, recognizing that r drops further after heavy use.

4.    Practice Self-Compassion

• The math validates that you’re not “failing”—you are simply navigating exponentially harder conditions.

• Treat your effort multiplier and recovery factor as neutral tools, not judgments.

  (These last two deserve their own essay entirely- they are much easier said than done, but well worth the effort!).

An Example of Practical Application:

Task: Organizing a  Covid-Safe(R) birthday party

· Pre-pandemic baseline effort (b): 4 hours.

· Current complexity factor (e): 2.5 (due to COVID-cautious planning: outdoor venue, safety/mitigation measures, RSVPs and managing testing/setup, etc.).

· Current recovery factor (r): 0.7 (stress and low energy).

Perceived time (t):
t = 4 × 2.5 / 0.7 ≈ 14.3 hours.

Creating Congruence :

1.    Break it down: Spread planning over several days or weeks.

2.    Lower expectations: Simplify where possible to reduce e (e.g., fewer guests, pre-made decorations).

3.    Build recovery periods: Account for rest to avoid further depleting r.

4.    Set milestones: Celebrate progress in small chunks rather than the whole task.

---

Releasing Self-Compassion:

1.    Acknowledge why it’s more challenging: This math confirms that a single task requires far more energy and time than it used to, so it’s okay that it all feels slower (this explains my use of “I’m trying to move through quicksand” to describe progress before.

2.    Adjust expectations: Scaling back isn’t failure—it’s adaptation.

3.    Celebrate effort over results: Even incomplete tasks represent real progress under challenging circumstances.

I plan to share more about how I am applying these calculations in my life and would love to hear how this concept strikes you and if you are going to try to use it in some capacity.

While I certainly don’t anticipate “pandemic mathing” every single task and process in my life, I am committed to integrating it into our project planning and placing it in strategic places that keep the equations top of my mind for me (e.g., near my desk, maybe on the background of my screens, and anywhere else it can help me act with self-compassion and congruence.)

As always, I wish all of you the self-compassion, congruence, love, health, well-being, and joy you deserve.

* More on the Range for R

Why the Lower Limit is 0.5

· "0.5" represents significantly reduced capacity: Chronic stress, decision fatigue, grief, and mental health challenges (like anxiety or burnout) lower available energy.

· On particularly bad days, individuals might feel they’re only operating at half their usual capacity—or less.

Why not go below 0.5?

· While it’s possible to feel completely depleted (approaching zero), people generally find ways to conserve some energy for survival or essential tasks. Using 0.5 as the floor helps maintain the equation’s practical utility without making tasks feel completely impossible in the math.

Real-Life Factors Affecting Recovery

· Health and physical energy: Chronic illnesses, long COVID, or lingering effects from other health issues lower reserves.

· Mental health: Anxiety, depression, and ongoing grief diminish emotional reserves.

· Social support: Limited interaction or lack of understanding from others can drain energy further.

· Time of year: For many, the holidays or flu season make the recovery factor dip even lower.