Coping with COVID-19

I thought life was already hectic being a college student but I had no idea it was about to get crazier when the pandemic started to hit. Everyone is being impacted by this dangerous virus in different ways. However, people who are at risk have to worry more than everyone else. Have you ever had to trust everyone else to decide your safety? Have you ever had to worry about absolutely everything you touch because one wrong move could cost you your life? This is the life of someone who is at risk during a pandemic. This is my life right now.

In 2019 I was diagnosed with lupus, an autoimmune disease that makes it extremely hard to fight off any illness or disease. I am in what would be referred to as an “at-risk group” for the coronavirus. This makes leaving my house very stressful. However, over the past couple of months, I have learned some very useful tips to help ensure I stay as safe as possible.

Always have sanitizer accessible

I do my own grocery shopping and have to work and this causes me to come in contact with many things touched by many people. The easiest way to be safe when doing these things is to always have hand sanitizer to use. I keep it in my car, my room, and all my bags. When I go shopping, I make sure to take some into the store and I will reapply to ensure I stay protected.

One important part of this is to know what sanitizer actually can protect you properly.

While some hand sanitizers come in pretty colors and cute cases you need to be smart about what you choose to buy. The ones like the one in the picture will do the most for you. The ones that say they can fight off the high percentage of illnesses and germs are the best to buy. The ones you can buy that are nicely scented and colored with not usually make these claims and will end up being rather pointless for you to use.

Know your surroundings

While living at risk, I have been able to become much more aware of my surroundings. To protect yourself, you need to know how the people around you are acting. If you are out in public and see someone not wearing a mask or coughing you need to keep your distance.

It is recommended that you stay six feet away from people to stay safe. However, the further away you stay the safer you will be.

With people you know it is easier to know where they have been and if they are safe to be around. Before I meet with anyone I ask where they have been and if they came in contact with anyone who has covid. A simple text can go a long way in protecting yourself.

Avoid meeting in large groups, especially with people you do not know. In a large group, there is more of a chance of spreading covid to multiple people. Also, in big groups, you will not know where everyone is and it is less likely that everyone will follow the safety protocols they should.

Wear your mask

This is the easiest way to keep yourself safe during these stressful times. A mask can do great things to protect you. If someone is coughing or even just breathing a mask will keep you from breathing in the dangerous particles that came from their mouth.

Even while social distancing it is easy to spread the virus if you are not also wearing a mask.

Take care of your mental health

It is hard to convince yourself to keep living your life when it can be so dangerous for you to leave your house. The mental health aspect of living while at risk during a pandemic is not talked about nearly enough. Trying to trust that everyone around you is being safe adds high level of anxiety to your life every day. Many people can not handle this, and it causes them to isolate themselves.

Staying in your home every day with no contact with anyone can cause you to dive into a depression. I did this; I was too scared to go out because I was worried about what might happen to me. You just need to learn how to protect your self correctly and you can manage to keep a near-normal life. The tips I have given helped me tremendously and helped me get out of the sad state my anxiety put me into.

Living during these hard times is bad enough, being at risk makes it worse. Just remember that other people do care and that you are not in this alone. There are many ways to get through this and many ways to protect yourself without relying on others.