I can still vividly remember leaving school on March 13th; I remember the nervous buzz travelling among students, the uncertainty in the air, and finally, I remember thinking the sole consequence we would face due to COVID-19 was an additional two weeks added to our spring break (something which greatly excited me). Cut to the 299th day stuck in quarantine, and I can’t help but reflect on the time spent indoors, the time lost, and the changes made not only to our everyday lives, but to our health, both mental and physical. One of the most notable changes we’ve experienced as a society is the lack of social interaction, and the limits/boundaries surrounding seeing your friends/family, or people in general. Humans are inherently social beings, and require an extent of social interaction and stimulation to reach their full potential i.e. happiness. This is not an observation, but a fact: when interacting with another individual in person, our brain releases large amounts of dopamine and serotonin, two key components in producing happiness. When lacking social interaction, our brain is unable to produce serotonin and dopamine as quickly as it normally would, resulting in diminished moods, and in extreme cases, depression. This, combined with a fear of the virus itself, and stress (both externally and internally) make it quite difficult for anyone, regardless of gender/race/age to cope healthily and successfully during this pandemic. As a 17 year old, I’m lucky enough to be with family and not completely isolated, but the struggle of having a drastically different life than last year is something that I still have trouble processing. I would consider myself to be a fairly social person, or an extrovert, and am used to often being with my friends, or going out - it feels wrong to be indoors all the time, and I feel as though I’m doing something wrong, or wasting my teenage years by spending all my time inside. Because I’m a high school senior, I also feel a great deal of frustration at the timing of this whole ordeal; I’ve spent my childhood and the last four years of my life looking forward to this year and graduation, and the fact I’m spending most of my classes isolated from my friends and unable to spend time with my classmates is a thought that honestly makes me really sad. Anger is a very prevalent emotion for me recently, and I notice myself dwelling on what could have been, or what I’ve missed out on, as well as self pity and deprecation. It helps to remind myself that others are in the same position, and I’m fortunate enough to have it better than many other people right now. All seriousness aside, one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced over these past nine months is boredom, and ways to deal with all the free time recently amassed. What follows are fun and healthy ways you can safely spend your remaining time in quarantine:
I hope these 10 suggestions are able to help pass time, and I hope 2021 brings us all a lot better than 2020 did! Stay safe, stay home, and wear a mask! :) Callie F https://dailyillini.com/special-sections/2020/04/09/bored-in-quarantine-twenty-ways-to-kill-time/
13 Comments
Caiti
1/11/2021 08:38:54 pm
I can definitely relate to the anxiety surrounding covid and how hard it was not be able to talk about that with your friends. If I’m being completely honest I actually didn’t mind quarantine and I kind of love online classes. I probably have more anxiety around talking to people in class than covid and being in quarantine. So online school is typically a lot less stressful for me than in class school. I feel kinda bad that I seem to be profiting off everyone else misery but I’m still hopeful that we won’t have to do the grad walk.
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Amelie G
1/12/2021 02:40:41 pm
Honestly i feel the same, all the stress, emotions, and more is really building up on us, and i think its really hard to cope with, especially at our age when we all want to socialize with friends, but obviously we can't cause we are stuck in a frickin pandemic!!!!! it really sucks that we grew up waiting for our moment to shine as grade 12's to not only graduate but to enjoy our last moments in a high school. i hope i speak among all grade 12's, about how we wish we had a normal year, with all the special organizations and trips to celebrate our grad year. but as we know we can only move forward and do our best with finding other solutions to make the best of it. like you said we are fortunate enough to have it better than others right now. i love how you gave us 10 suggestions to pass time in quarantine, i might keep drawing as a new hobby that i learnt in march and i never knew i was that good, might as well embrace it i guess. anyways thank you for showing your thoughts on this pandemic situation!!
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Kaysey
1/12/2021 03:30:11 pm
Yes yes yes I relate so much. I was so excited for two extra weeks of spring break and by may i was so bored and over the whole virus. I also feel appreciative of the fact that I had a comfortable environment to spend my quarantine days in. I really liked the suggestions you included for how to stay busy. I know I went for a lot of walks, and baked a lot in the beginning of this whole pandemic haha. And as a fellow senior I hope for all of us we can find a way to have a fun grad year!
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Kiana Birk
1/12/2021 07:47:00 pm
Thank you for sharing! I appreciate you expressing your true emotions and how all of this has personally impacted you. I absolutely agree when you mention that humans are inherently social beings and we require social interaction to feel happy. This is something that I truly believe is important and value very much. Similarly, I am also very grateful to be with my family during this time as I know of some people who have had to go through this alone. Throughout quarantine I have also had the challenge of not knowing how to spend my time, therefore I appreciate the tips you have listed, and will definitely try them out.
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Abbey
1/13/2021 02:44:21 am
Hey Callie! I really relate to the variety emotions you have experienced over quarantine, especially boredom and thinking about things I have missed out on. I have been looking for some new ideas to help entertain myself and I will definitely have to try a few you've listed! This was a great reminder to brush up on my spanish skills, and I should probably clean my room. I too consider myself an extrovert, and it has been incredibly difficult not being able to see my friends so I am always searching for new ways to keep myself busy. I thought your blog was really well written, and adding ten ideas on how to combat boredom was super helpful! Thank you for sharing
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nevada
1/13/2021 08:49:08 am
Callie I really liked this blog!! I really really appreciate that even if you touched on some negative emotions, you looked on the positive side. I think a lot of us in the class can relate, I have been feeling very angry and resentful that this is my senior year, after everything I worked for. But you have a very nice shift towards a positive mindset and give us an awesome list!! Loved that you left it on a positive note.
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Tyler L
1/13/2021 10:07:31 am
I completely agree with everything you said here. This pandemic has been very hard on a lot of people around the world since human interaction is part of almost everyone's day. Whether it's friends, family or even work crew. I have noticed so many more people trying to get out of the house and going for a walk or a bike ride because they feel like they've been in the house too long. Which yes that's true and it is good to see everyone getting out. For us during the first part of covid I thought we were going to go back to school after a month but then we never went back for the rest of the year. I would spend at least 8 hours a day doing homework I had been given and then I would go out for a bike ride along the dike with my family to keep us up and moving. Personally I didn't find it to be too difficult on me mentally because I always found something to do and I even was able to get a job with my mom because at the time they needed them to open even though techniqually they weren't first responders. Reading all the things we can use to cope are honestly what I've been doing like I'm always looking for something to do so I was very happy that I still had school for the most part until summer.
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Madison
1/13/2021 12:19:39 pm
COVID really took a toll on everyone’s lives and especially for kids in high school. I too remember looking forward to the two extra weeks of spring break last year not knowing of the worse year to come. In quarantine, and my many hours at home, I have tried doing some of those things that you suggested (my baking skills have definitely improved) and found some way to keep myself busy but by loosing touch with a lot of people. I didn’t know that it was possible to watch Netflix together online, and am really excited to now catch up with friends and watch a movie with them. Thanks Callie!
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Avery
1/13/2021 01:21:54 pm
I too relate to this blog especially when you said that you thought quarantine would only be an an extra 2 weeks onto spring break which also made me excited. To think about everything that's happened this past year is insane. I enjoy the list that you put to stay entertained!
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jenna
1/13/2021 01:28:09 pm
I also have vivid memories of the last days of school before it shut down, when everyone felt unsafe and unsure. Every time someone sniffles or coughed we all panicked and little did we know it was just the start. Quarantine, no touching or being close, and all the uncertainty is something we are all not used to and I love your list of ideas to help get through these tough times. It is a great opportunity to try new ideas with the ever-changing facts of the virus.
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Brianna
1/13/2021 01:38:31 pm
That’s really interesting, because I’m seeing both sides of the pandemic. Some people really struggled with boredom and anxiety, but I found myself never struggling with boredom because I’m always busy doing something at home. As far as anxiety goes, I’ve always struggled with a level of anxiety unrelated to covid so I found the pandemic made no difference on my levels of anxiety for me personally. Although I completely understand struggling during these difficult times.
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Lucy Greene
1/13/2021 01:39:19 pm
Thank you for your ideas! i really needed those, I too struggle deeply with bordom and my room and prove that. so you 10 bordem curers are gonna come to the rescue. And i just want to say that I really feel for the seniors this year and with covid i bet this has really taken a toll on you guys mentally, because this is not how you would of wanted to spend it.
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Nyah Gentry
1/13/2021 01:48:50 pm
This is such a great blog Callie. Quarantine had been really hard for me. I rely on my friends for my entertainment as I am an only child. It’s been really difficult going four months without seeing my friends while maintaining a healthy mental space. I love that you chose this topic and I think you did a great job
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