COVID Turns One and We Are All Still Here

By Alexa David-Lang, ‘22

    Approximately one year ago today, a virus came that would change our lives forever. It was something new and foreign and we were all scared of what it could lead to. But we were also super happy because we got 2 weeks off of school! Woohoo!

    Little did we know that COVID-19 would lead to hundreds of thousands of deaths, a nationwide shutdown, an economic decline, and *shudder* the rise of Zoom.

    So here we are, a year later. Still trapped in our homes, still going to school online, life still put on hold. I think it is safe to say that COVID has had a negative effect on all of us. With kids not being able to socialize, falling behind in school, and missing out on important parts of their lives, this has been pretty painful for us. You have obviously heard all of this before because it has been all that is on the news for the past year. But what makes this even scarier is that with COVID’s birthday comes a whole lot of troubles. 

    First off, we have a continuation of the problems we had when COVID first hit us. While you have probably heard and experienced many of these a thousand times, they are still here and worse than ever. People like us in our later teenage years are missing social experiences that are supposed to set the precedent for our lives. By primarily communicating with others online, we are putting social and emotional growth on the back burner. Additionally, experiencing life outside your home is one of the most significant ways to prepare yourself for college and the rest of your life without even realizing it. Our number of interactions with other people has gone down significantly and has led to many people feeling more introverted or awkward in social situations. This may not seem like a big deal, but it is something that we have taken for granted and will now struggle without. 

    Also for my fellow teens in their later years, this changes how we look at life after high school significantly. In addition to the social aspect, we now have to consider COVID when making choices about the rest of our lives. Should we defer a year? Will our schools still be online when we arrive? Will we still have access to the same opportunities like internships and jobs that we are supposed to be taking advantage of around this time in our lives? It makes figuring out what we want that much harder because, in addition to trying to plan our futures, we have to plan them around a deadly virus. 

    But these are all about the future, what about now? Well, life is still shifting right now. As each class, activity, event, and more moves online, the divide between economic classes grows. Students without reliable access to the internet or a computer will fall behind while those with access to those items will not think twice about their privilege. Many students, especially in NYC, rely on schools for things like meals, technology, tutoring, and so much more. So these students will be forced to visit the schools in person, likely taking public transportation, and risk getting infected to get supplies that others automatically have. And with the switch from blended to remote learning with only a vague idea of when students are returning, students will continue to fall behind in these conditions that were not made to help people like them. 

    Those are problems that we have had since the beginning, but why is it worse now? I am glad you asked. There are a couple that I have been thinking about recently. First is screen time. I, like many other people, am sick and tired of Zoom, but the cherry on top of the blue light sundae is that everything is online now. You finish your six-hour school day and then get back on Zoom for your extracurriculars. When you are done with that, you FaceTime your friends because otherwise, you would not see them. And when you are done with that, you either relax and watch TV or go on your phone or finish your homework, all of which is online. The screen time feels never-ending, and I feel fairly certain that some study will come out in a few years saying that all of our eyes are being horribly disfigured from this.

    I mentioned the social impacts of quarantine earlier, but as the school year continues, more people are having to go entire years or even semesters without meeting their fellow classmates or teachers. This is worrisome because it is obviously much easier to create and maintain bonds when you can see someone in person multiple days a week. Particularly with not seeing teachers in person, this may make it harder to form close student-teacher relationships which will lead to helpful letters of recommendation for colleges or other programs. One of the ways that I got close with my teachers was by popping in during their office hours to chat with them. Of course, teachers still have office hours now, but it is over Zoom which means more time looking at your computer. I have definitely found myself hesitating to make appointments with teachers more now because I have to think about whether or not I will be able to stand staring at another screen.

    Lastly, and this is a big one, we do not know when this will end. I know that people are trying to stay optimistic to keep themselves sane and there is a vaccine that people are getting. But we do not know when this will be completely over, when we will get to stop wearing masks, if the vaccine prevents virus transmission, and when things will be back the way they used to be. This keeps me awake at night, as I am sure it does many of you. And yes, this is an issue that came up when COVID first emerged, it might have even been more uncertain then, but the fact that a year has gone by does not make me feel confident. Of course, we are in a much better place than we were last year, but that is in terms of knowledge and the vaccine. In terms of mental, emotional, social, and physical health, I don’t know about that one. I remember when quarantine first started. I was so eager to find fun things to do to keep myself busy because I wanted to do something productive for those “few weeks” that we would have a break. But now it is March again, and I just feel really tired. Getting myself through the day is hard enough. I do not have enough energy to pick up a new hobby or do a home workout. Because we have been at home for this long and there is no concrete end in sight, motivation is low all across the board and probably will be for a while.

    Usually, at the end of articles like these, I end with some upbeat piece of advice to tell you that things are not so bad and you can do something to help, but I do not have that for you today. As you have heard millions of times, these are unprecedented times. I do not know how to give you advice just as I am sure many of your parents, teachers, counselors, and whoever else does not know how to give you advice. We are all struggling through this together so all I have to say is hold on tight. We do not know when this will end, we do not know when things will get better, but also it is okay that things are not great right now. As long as you allow yourself to be sad, mad, lonely, frustrated, and whatever other emotions you are feeling, you will be okay. So grab some snacks and your laptop charger because we are going to be here a while.