Living in a pandemic.
If I’m being honest, there is not really a way to describe these last 2 months with the CoVid-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown. Like many others, I have never experienced anything like this before and it has sparked a whirlwind of emotions — stress, confusion, worry, loneliness and more.
A lot has happened to say the least — but in terms of my academic life, all universities have closed, my exams are cancelled, and universities have switched to online learning.
In transitioning to online learning, if I’m being frank, it is not for me. Online learning has led me to feeling very stressed and overwhelmed. It requires me to sort through a lot of documents and emails to know exactly what to do, as a lot of things have changed and are still changing. On top of that, dealing with the stress of the pandemic and everything it entails has contributed, for instance helping out with childcare.
Prior to online learning, attending university and being surrounded by other students, especially my housemates, was more helpful and kept me more on track with my course than I realised.
Living among fellow students created a good balance of work and play and all of us would keep each other informed, so that we could remind each other about work due in. In my case, I have a housemate, who studies the same course as me, which I really benefitted from, for instance we would keep each other up to date and test each other on knowledge. As well as this, my house would do library sessions together, where we would spend the whole day until quite late (usually about 12am) doing work.
However, with online learning, I have needed to be more self-reliant and independent, not only because I lack the support system of my housemates, but also because I am not going into university, where my course mates and staff are discussing what is due and what is needed for it.
To put it short, email has become my best friend.
That is pretty much the only line of contact between students and staff at the university and is even more imperative, regarding the online learning.
Online learning has also tested my organisation and time-management skills, and forced me to work on it, which is good in a way. With the lockdown, my days lack routine and structure as there is simply very little to do, which weirdly for me, has made it easier to fall into the habit of simply doing nothing (e.g. sleeping). Now, I find I have to actively remind myself to keep in tune with all the university updates and complete all my work. However, it is still something I struggle with and still will work on.
BUT it isn’t all bad.
I have taken advantage of the extra free time by engaging in a daily exercise routine. This not only makes me feel physically fit but adds somewhat structure back into my life during this time, which has been helpful for me. It makes me good that I am actually doing something with this time, something other than work.
Also, it has made me appreciate a lot of things that I took for granted before — friends, family, but even just being able to freely spend time outside and interact with other people.
In moving forward, I want to continue to improve on my organisation skills and time-management. I would like to devote more time to myself, trying new things and not letting myself get overly stressed given the severity of the situation. As this lockdown and online learning continues, I look forward to eventually returning to normal life…
