The coronavirus pandemic has reached one of its highest peaks since its start in 2020 due to the new variants of the virus that seem to emerge every other month. With this new rise, the question of whether a quarantining period such as the gruesome spring/summer of 2020 is coming again is flooding peoples’ minds. The thought of having to go back to online school is definitely on my mind, and it’s scary.
In the spring of 2020, I was starting my freshman year at John Brown University as a Walton scholar. This was an already nerve-recking situation for me since I had only two months of preparation before coming to the United States. However, I was able to soothe myself because the original plan was for me to go back home that summer. “It’s only four months.” I told myself.
And then, plans changed.
The pandemic struck March that year, and, in the midst of all the uncertainty that came with it, we were forced to decide quickly what the next few months of our lives would look like. I decided to stay here on campus during quarantine instead of going home. It seemed right at the moment, and, once more, the original plan was that I still was going to be able to go home for the summer.
But plans changed again.
Long-story short, I ended up staying on campus for 11 months instead of four. And this situation naturally took a toll on my mental health. Everything had happened so fast, and I wasn’t ready for it. Nobody was.
According to a KKF Tracking Poll, “during the pandemic, about four in 10 adults in the U.S. had reported symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder, a share that has been largely consistent, up from one in 10 adults who reported these symptoms from January to June 2019.” The pandemic hit our health tremendously all over the world, yes, but it was not only physical.
And if we’re being honest, we don’t even have to look for stats to know this is a reality. Ask anyone about that summer, and you’ll hear the same stories of how everyone felt like they were losing it.
It’s been two years since the beginning of the pandemic, and by now it’s clear this is not going anywhere. So, while it is still important to take it seriously, Acknowledging what another isolation period might mean for people is also important to consider.
I, like many others, am doing everything I can to stop the spread of this virus. I got my vaccine, I quarantine when I need to and I follow mask regulations without trouble. I don’t want to go back to online school or stricter regulations, and I hope nobody does.
So, if you take anything from this, whether you’re scared of COVID-19 or not, just remember that there are other silent pandemics affecting people right now, and mental health issues are one of them.
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