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  2020-05-01

  The Danger of Being Essential

  Everyone in the entire world has been affected in one way or another by the pandemic of COVID-19. The rapid spread and contagiousness of the virus has made the spread of the virus virtually impossible to contain, because of this, the virus has gone worldwide in a matter of months and has caused many casualties. My mother is a nurse working on the frontlines, and every day I am afraid for her. My family faces the constant fear of exposure. To protect the rest of the family, my mother has been quarantining herself on one side of the house and has been very careful about keeping clean and using disinfectants. I know that the work my mom does has taken a toll on her mental health lately. She seems more discouraged and less motivated than usual. Part of this is likely her isolation from her family, however, I think that working on the frontlines right now can be very stressful and I know that is it typical to lose faith in modern medicine at a time like this. My mother has mentioned how sad it is to see people on their deathbed, when there is nothing you can do to save them. She told me one of her patients was an elderly man who had no family except for his wife, and he could not contact her, and she could not visit him during his last hours of life. This made me realize how terrifying it can be to have the coronavirus. While I was discussing the virus with my mother, she told me about the supply shortages that many hospitals are experiencing at the moment. The main issue is with ventilators. Many coronavirus patients need to be put on a ventilator to facilitate their recovery, but without these machines, there are many more casualties. There is also a shortage in Tylenol and medical masks. Tylenol is used as a pyretic to reduce fever in patients and reduce pain from the symptoms. Medical masks are needed most in hospital settings because the healthcare providers need to be protected the most. Everyday Healthcare workers put their lives on the line by going to work and treating coronavirus patients, and every day they are helping to improve the statistics of the coronavirus pandemic. I worry for my mother every time she goes to work and pray that she stays safe and healthy despite the factors not in her favor.
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  2020-03-22

  Maintaining Friendships at Home

  During the Coronavirus pandemic crisis over the last few months, it has been very hard to keep in touch with friends and extended family. Because we are all stuck inside, and there aren’t many ways to reach out to people, it has been very hard for me to feel connected to my social circle. Luckily, my closest friends and I stay connected by calling each other on FaceTime at least once a week, and this image was captured during one of those facetime calls. I love my friends like they are family, and these weekly calls are what are helping me get through these lonely and monotonous times. My everyday life has been reduced to home workouts, schoolwork, and television. Working out at home and by myself often leaves me feeling discouraged, but I have been using this problem of mine as a way to stay connected with my friends. The girls in my group of friends have all started tracking our workouts and activity levels. We have all been communicating about our progress and occasionally we will also share new workouts with each other. This is really great because it is especially important now that we all keep our health at it’s very best in the case that we do catch the virus. I have realized that some of my friendships rely solely on common classes or certain activities and face to face interaction. Now that I do not have the opportunity to do such things, these friendships have started to fade. It’s hard to know the status of a relationship. Some friendships are strong enough to last through hard times, and some friendships fade when times get tough. Though it feels awful to lose a friend, it is more comforting to realize that maybe they were not great friends if they cannot stay in contact through this pandemic crisis. Although it is tough not being able to see friends and some family, it is important to stay inside and encourage others to do so as well. Going out to eat and going to places surrounded by people is only going to cause the number of cases to rise. Not only does going out put your own health at risk, but it puts the health of everyone you come in contact with at risk. Right now, it is very important to keep in mind that the best way to care for those you love is to stay away from them and stay safe.