If You Come Out of This Quarantine Sane, That’s Enough
Sick of people telling you to “learn a new skill”? Yeah, me too.
If you’ve been spending a lot of time on the internet lately, you’ve probably seen this picture going around:
If you haven’t, you’ve probably heard a string of similar words posted on someone’s Instagram story or Twitter feed. Something with the essence of: “If you aren’t doing something productive with all this new leisure time, you’re a lazy sack of sh*t”.
My first thought upon seeing this sentiment was ‘Hmm. This doesn’t seem right’. Upon pondering it further I agreed with my first impression, ‘Yeah. This isn’t right’.
Here’s why:
Life as we know it has changed completely
One day we were all getting up for our jobs and/or school, and the next everything is suddenly shut down and oh, we also can’t see/touch each other. There was no time for anybody to process the severity of this situation, as it all happened so fast. The effects of this can be detrimental, and traumatic for many. The fear of losing someone at risk, getting sick, or not being able to be with loved ones so suddenly is a difficult thing to process, let alone recover from quickly.
People we love are dying
My grandfather passed away from what is believed to be COVID-19, although he was never able to get tested. He passed away barely able to breathe until he was put on morphine and able to fall into a deep sleep. My family was not allowed to be there during his final moments, and now we cannot hold a funeral to mourn properly. People losing their loved ones during this time aren’t even allowed to be with them while they pass or grieve them properly afterward. It’s awful enough this virus is killing so many, but now we can’t even hold funerals to formally mourn them. The opportunity to say goodbye has been ripped from us, and we don’t have any say in the matter.
Life experiences are being stolen from us
Proms, weddings, graduations. All the things that make life fun, celebrating love and success with family and friends. The things we look forward to months even years in advance, unexpectedly canceled. These events are what keep us in touch with the people they love, and they’re what make the hardships we go through worth it. Without these, life can seem pretty bleak. And well, now that we can't experience them, it does.
Relationships are falling apart
You’re either stuck with your significant other or you can’t see them; both suck. Spending too much time with your partner is proven to be potentially dangerous for a relationship. Conversely, not seeing them at all is extremely difficult as well. Fighting with your partner is not uncommon during this time, and if you go to Reddit's thread r/relationship_advice you’ll see just how much of a toll this quarantine is taking on our love lives.
Domestic abuse and suicide rates are rising
People who are in abusive households are now stuck with their abusers. Domestic abuse websites are seeing a large growth in visits, and people are fearing for their lives. Reddit has posted a mega-thread of COVID-19 abuse resources, so if you are a victim in need of help please click here. Another hidden yet deadly consequence of this quarantine is the suicides, with calls to the suicide hotline raising to an unmanageable level, and people committing suicides that are believed to be caused by this pandemic. These are the nightmares this time has brought upon us; the darkest and most unfortunate consequences of those who are not in healthy and happy homes, or who are struggling to mentally cope.
It’s clear that this time in our lives is difficult in numerous ways. Many of us are struggling to come to terms with all the change and loss we’ve experienced, and if you’re one of these people then know you’re not alone. We all need to come together and be supportive of one another, and recognize sometimes simply getting out of bed is an accomplishment. This is all temporary, and we will get our lives back. In the meantime, if someone tells you you’re lazy for not “learning a new skill” with all this “vacation” time we’re having, you can tell them there’s in fact a new skill they have yet to learn: how to shut the f*ck up and mind their business.
