Coronavirus: 'When the lockdown is lifted people are going to be freaked out'

Khi Leonard spent a year in almost complete isolation at the top of a remote Chinese mountain while training in Tai chi and Kung Fu.

When he arrived home in Scotland he was shocked at how difficult he found being suddenly immersed back into a thriving city with all the noise and hustle and bustle.

The 45-year-old said he feared the over stimulation for some people when the lockdown was lifted would be difficult to cope with too.

He said: "When I got back to Glasgow it took a month for me to adjust. I barely left the house and I couldn't be around people. The noise was too much and the change felt harsh and abrupt.

"I think a lot of people are going to have the same problem adjusting when they finally can come out after the lockdown.

"I think a lot will turn to alcohol. There should be counselling as they will have gone from a fairly peaceful and calm way of living to sudden stimulation.

"At the moment under the lockdown there are far less cars on the roads and therefore a lot less stimulation from noise and everyone is calmer.

"When the lockdown is lifted some people are going to be freaked out at large crowds and take a bit of adjustment."

Khi went from four years working in a busy bar on the Cayman Islands where he worked 16 hour shifts six days a week to the isolation of Wudang San Feng Kung Fu Academy in the Wudang Shan mountains.

He said: "It only took a week of adjustment for me when I arrived in the Wudang Shan mountains but it took a lot longer to readjust to city life again after my time there.

"When you open the door in the UK you hear a wall of traffic noise but in China there was no sound.

"There was nothing at all and at night there was no lights so you couldn't even see your hand in front of your face, it was so pitch black."

There were just five people with Khi at the school and temple where they trained 10,000ft (3,048m) at the top of a mountain. It was a two hour drive to reach Wudang town at the bottom.

There were no shops to visit at the top of the mountain and a chef would make simple meals of cabbage soup and rice and eggs for breakfast.

Only two of the teachers spoke a little English.

The winter was harsh with four months of snow and freezing temperatures.

Khi, who was originally from Bournemouth in England before moving to Edinburgh and then Glasgow, said: "There was no heating in our rooms and the water in our kettles would freeze. The snow also muffled any sounds so it was very peaceful.

"The buses would not run in the snow so we were even more isolated during the winter.

"When you don't speak the language and nobody else around you speaks yours then you are isolated wherever you are and then multiple that by being up a mountain where you don't see many people and it becomes slightly surreal.

"It was a unique situation for me like this lockdown is for people here now."

He added: "There was a lack of stimulation and input, so it was a culture shock when I got back home and I felt overwhelmed.

"At no point did I ever feel lonely or lost though in China, you just have to learn to let go and to chill.

"You need to let your stress go. People who are feeling uncomfortable under the lockdown are holding onto their stress from their normally busy life but once they let that go they will find it is really easy.

"My experience in China made me realise it was something I could do so it came automatically to me when we were put under lockdown here in Scotland."