During Mental Health Awareness week, KentOnline is shining a light on the struggles people are facing ahead of pandemic restrictions easing on Monday.

Reporter Alex Jee opens up about his anxieties surrounding the pandemic.

I'm sat in front of the TV with my laptop open in front of me – a lockdown habit I haven't been able to shift – when the familiar blond mop of Boris Johnson appears on my screen.

He's telling the House of Commons that lockdown restrictions are easing next week as expected; rates are falling, the vaccination programme is working; we are looking, tentatively, at least, at a return to normality.

It's fantastic news. No doubt about it, the mood across the country is jubilant at the prospect of finally being able to see family and friends, and cross the threshold into the hallowed grounds of the local pub.

I can feel my heart lift at hearing the news, but at the same time my chest is tightening and there's an anxious voice starting to pipe up at the back of my head.

My phone pings, with my friends' group chat organising the next trip to the pub. "Do you want to come?" is the question.

I do, I really do. But at the same time, in a way I can't express at that moment, I don't want to do anything of the sort.

I really can't stress enough that for the most part, I can't wait for lockdown to end. It'll be unbelievable to be able to hug my parents, and see friends and even work colleagues face-to-face again.

But there's another part of me that really doesn't want restrictions to ease.

As I walk to the shops the next day, there are some anxieties that I just can't shake, as I see groups of people in the street reconnecting without masks or social distancing.

I have never really dealt with anxiety before, but by all accounts, I'm by no means alone, according to Lorainne Gibbs from West Kent Mind.

"Any kind of change, even positive, can lead to anxiety..."

The mental health charity, she says, has been fielding more calls and meetings than ever with people trying to cope with anxiety over lockdown easing.

"It is obviously different for each individual," she said, "but a lot more people than we might think will find the easing of restrictions difficult in a number of different ways.

"We've been talking, of course, to those who were finding things hard before Covid but these anxieties are also there in people who didn't suffer before lockdown.

"Any kind of change, even positive, can lead to anxiety, and it's important to know that it's okay to feel anxious about something that everyone feels is a great thing."

These anxieties can manifest themselves in different ways, and be caused by different things.

Following conversations with my fiancé and friends and family, I've realised many of mine relate to the future and safety.

Like so many my age, I'm yet to receive my coronavirus vaccination and won't for a month or more at least, and the prospect of going back into restaurants, bars, or even just busier town centres without that layer of protection is not one that I find wholly appealing.

"Uncertainty about the future is a common anxiety with any change," Ms Gibbs tells me, "And we have had a lot of people worried about their safety.

"The important things are to always talk about it, nobody should be going through these things alone, and always get your advice from proper sources."

For advice from Mind about managing anxieties over lockdown easing, click here.

For NHS advice, click here.

To keep up-to-date with all the latest developments with your local hospitals and other health stories, click here.

For the latest coronavirus news and advice, click here.

Read more: All the latest news from Kent