What a Time to Be Alive!

This blog post is being written by myself, on my bed, at 7 PM on a Monday. I can promise you that this “fact” is far from typical for me.

On a Monday, on a week like this, (when my team and I are working on the payroll for the end of the month and trying to close the books for the quarter) being home on a Monday is a very rare occurrence.

If you are wondering why I am home, I can definitely tell you it’s not because I want to be! It’s more because I have to be. For the safety of my family, my friends, my coworkers, and more importantly the world.

Right now, our world is going through something really big. Something that will completely ruin our lives (and economy) for the immediate and foreseeable future, but we do have to hope it does not last longer than it has too.

I consider myself very lucky to live in the United States where I have the freedom and more importantly ability to work from home. But I know many people are not as fortunate, and I know that there are people who are also not fortunate enough to live in a country where they are afforded that ability (the freedom part, not the work from home – although that’s pretty limited right now as well). However, the United States isn’t the only country currently hurting, we are not the only country going through this pandemic as so many other countries are fighting this even more than we are. It is a global pandemic, the first in about a decade (the last pandemic was the H1N1 Swine Flu pandemic in 2009/2010). We have had a few epidemics in recent years (I.e. Zika virus and the West African ebola), but it’s been close to ten years since the last pandemic was reported by the World Health Organization (WHO).

COVID-19, or corona virus as it’s been named, has flipped the world upside down. The number of deaths continue to rise worldwide causing tremendous panic and distress among the citizens of the world. What has been deemed to be incurable at the moment, currently has only one method of stopping it from continuing to spread: isolation and social distancing. That sounds so much easier said than done, of that I am 100% sure. I am the type of person who is an introvert at heart, but an extrovert by nature. I thrive at staying home or doing things that are relaxing and with people I enjoy to spend quality time with, but I also truly love to go to the mall or to have my hair done. I realized very quickly that I need social interaction more than I ever imagined. Being confined drives me a little insane! You don’t realize until something like this happens how much you take for granted the little things like being able to go to work and be around your coworkers, or being able to run to the grocery store and talk to the store clerk who is checking you out. I know I took for granted the little things like having the ability to go anywhere that wasn’t my own house (yes, this includes going to visit my parents!).

Having to be “stuck” at home has become extremely suffocating, and I know that I am not alone in feeling this. Although there are many people who love this newfound ability to be able to work from home, or be home with their family and/or significant other, to spend so much quality time together; I personally would much rather be at work, in my beautiful building, surrounded by my awesome coworkers or even at the mall, getting a mani/pedi done. But this can’t happen, and won’t be happening for the foreseeable future, because the priority right now all over the country and world is to stay put, stay home, stay quarantined to help stop this virus from spreading more and killing even MORE people than it already has.

China, thankfully, is reporting less and less death, but the death toll continues to rise elsewhere in the world like Italy and the United States. More states in the United States are following the lead that California, New York, and New Jersey have taken in shutting down non-essential businesses and enforcing a curfew for people. Florida is slowly implementing this and my best friend told me today that Washington D.C. is doing the same. Just because it’s slowing down in one country, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to disappear everywhere else and this virus isn’t just affecting our health. It is slowly affecting the state of the economy, both domestic and worldwide, and much to the surprise of many people around the world – it is also affecting people’s mental health.

Personally, I can tell you my anxiety has significantly increased. I know friends who are experiencing more anxiety, some even who’s anxiety and stress has caused them to experience seizures and panic attacks. Stress can sometimes do just as much harm as something like this virus, and it is extremely important for everyone to try to remain calm and optimistic that by practicing social distancing and isolating yourselves from others we can prevent this disease from getting worse.

I have seen so many memes on the Internet specifically on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest that are making fun of the social distancing thing and the effect that quarantine has on people. Im not going to sit here and lie, telling you that I’m not the first to share the memes with my friends and family because I am. But it really is also super important to take this situation seriously! I have numerous aunts, cousins, and even a sister who are doctors, nurses, or involved in the healthcare community that are not as lucky as you and I and get to stay home. They have to go to work and help save lives, deliver babies, or even translate the notes that a doctor takes when visiting the patients! It is for them, and for everyone else, that I stay home (even if I want to go and rather be at Target!).

Reading back this post, my texts, the emails my work has been sending, even the news really amazes me. It’s incredible to see history unfold the way it currently is. I always thought it was a crazy time for me to be alive considering everything going on in the world (before this) and now with the COVID-19, it’s even crazier! What a time to be alive! Better yet, what a time to see the world at its best and worst! I am sure this won’t be the absolute last time we experience something like this, and it definitely isn’t the first – but hopefully, it will be the last during our lifetime.

Stay safe everyone!