We still have months until something like normalcy returns. How do we make the best of it?

It has been a long tough 2020. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel! Every day we now have a little bit more daylight. Effective COVID vaccines are beginning to make their way into our communities, many people are wearing masks in public places to prevent virus transmission, effective treatments are being found with mortality rates going down, and (sigh) many of us curtailed travel and went without seeing family these holidays to lower the risk of anyone getting sick.

I, like most of you, am tired of the darkness, the cold and the social distancing, and I really, really want my life to get back to normal. But the experts tell us (and my 30 years of working public health causes me to agree) we will not be back to any semblance of normal until this summer at least.

So, what do we do in the meantime? How do we deal with being in this “long dark COVID tunnel” for several more months? While the next months are not going to be anyone’s idea of fun, there are things we all can do to make our lives, and the lives of those around us, better:

First: Change our mindsets from “this is going to be horrible” to “I’m not going to let this stop me from doing what I want to do” (though these things might have to be achieved differently).

Second: Make a list of all those things you’ve always wanted to do or told yourself that you’d do “when you get time.” Then realize that this “tunnel” situation may have given you the time and opportunity to start working on them. (I would guess that right now most everyone is indoors more, and many have fewer interruptions these days — though this may not be true for some, like health care workers and families with young children, who have my sympathies in these hard times).

Third: Look at that list and see if there is anything on it that could be done while waiting for that light at the end of the tunnel. Have you wanted to learn to paint with watercolors? Finish home projects that you just never seemed to have time for in the past? Learn to play the guitar? Get into better physical shape? Learn how to meditate and reduce stress? Work on eating a healthier diet (including trying out all those recipes that you collected over the years)? Learn something totally new (like the geology of the southwestern U.S. — my goal of 2020)? Investigate your family’s history? Relearn to crochet (like my younger sister)? Or new ways of woodworking?

The possibilities are endless. You just have to pick something that sparks your interest and enthusiasm.

Fourth: Find a partner, a family member, a buddy to support you while you work on these goals. It’s well known that we get more things done and stick to goals better when we are not alone. Even if this is only over the phone. (Knowing that my weightlifting buddy will be on that phone twice a week is often only thing that gets me to work out, and I’m sure anyone looking in my window, as I count out loud while doing those bicep curls, probably thinks I’m quite odd, but my arms are already getting stronger!)

Fifth: Gather the materials, websites, books, apps — whatever you need to accomplish these goals. Put them out on your kitchen table, next to your desk or your bed or wherever you will see them every day. Use them to remind you of the goals you want to work on. And when you finish a step toward accomplishing these goals, celebrate! (I celebrate by eating a piece of dark chocolate; which will not surprise anyone who knows me!)

Thus, don’t hold your breath and just think this “tunnel” is something to be endured.  Use it. You may be amazed at all you can accomplish in the next few months.

Making and working on new, old or unique goals for the next few “tunnel” months will mean coming out into that light at the tunnel’s end with a sense of accomplishment and gratitude that you not only survived but you found the inner strength to thrive — despite everything!

Good luck! And I’ll see you next summer.

Dr. Patricia Quinlisk is Iowa state epidemiologist emeritus and a demential prevention instructor. This column originally appeared in the Des Moines Register.