Items
Date Modified is exactly
10/21/2023
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2022-03-02
burnout
I think these are the years of burnout. I felt so isolated during quarantine. I worked so hard to occupy myself while I heard sirens blaring from ambulances rushing. I worked so hard when things started to 'go back to normal' but people were still dying. It's years later and it's still not over. I'm so tired. Don't want to work when the world feels like it is still ending. -
2021-04-07
A Mother's Anxiety
My mom worked in a nursing home. For a while, she did her job and came home with gloves and disinfectant. We all kept distance in our small home. One day, she came home with COVID-19. Burnt out by incompetent managers, menopause, and long-standing mental issues, they became tenfold. They all consumed her while she was sick. When she recovered from COVID-19, everything else stayed. She was severely mentally fragile. She would cry every day and wanted to be in the same room with everyone, all the time. She could not be left alone for months. My father did not remain compassionate and sympathetic. My sister struggled to be my mom's friend. I used all my energy to keep her head above tears. The emotional toll on everyone in my family was the worst we have have ever faced. We all struggled to help her. She eventually recovered and not goes on walks everyday, by herself. -
2021-02-13
My Life Changed during the Pandemic
I've consistently been an extremely outgoing, positive, and optimistic person. There was never a moment when I wasn't socializing and beaming. However, it put me in a depressive condition during the pandemic, where I was downright isolated. Sure I was able to spend time with my family in the consolation of our home; I felt secluded from the universe. I went from someone that was frequently out to be confined to the safety of my residence. From my enthusiasm for learning to gazing at a screen and calling it my daily interaction, the pandemic took away my motivation to learn and my passion for academics. I noticed a transformation in who I was when I hardly woke up and found no inspiration for anything. I couldn't contact the support I needed because a global pandemic seized the world by storm. Most therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists weren't established for online sessions. I attempted suicide in 2021, and I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder. I was admitted into a suicide prevention program and was provided daily antidepressants to suppress the desire to commit suicide. Now that the world is gradually yielding to what seems ordinary, I'm attaining my life back. However, the person I was before the pandemic is gone, and I'm still attempting to discover myself every day. -
2020-07-29
What Got me Through the Pandemic!
The pandemic was a really tough time for me. Apart from not being able to see my friends and visit family, I was unable to work, I was taking care of my sick grandmother and I wholeheartedly took on the responsibility of maintaining a household. I neglected my mental health and ignored my physical well being and overtime the effects of stress were visible on my face. Eventually I started to neglect my responsibilities and would remain in my room for days at a time, not eating, not showering and not speaking. It was evident that I was experiencing some depressive symptoms. To combat this I had to change my habits and began writing these little manifestations and used them as mantras everyday just to get out of bed. I wrote them on a long white sheet and hung it on my closet door because it was often the first thing I saw when I woke up. They really helped me start my days with a positive mindset. Even though this was created during the mandatory quarantine for COVID-19 over the course of 2020, I find that they are still helpful when I am feeling stressed and need a mood boost. NB: this was not created all in one day. The first line was made in July when I was having a really hard day and decided to cut off all my hair. The others were added gradually over the rest of the pandemic with the latest edition being “SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY” in November 2022 because I started working again but had to be out of bed at 5am every morning. This is the name of a song by Amarae ft Moliy which I played every day taking the train on my way to work as motivation for being on time. In the picture you will see that there's space for lots of additions and I plan to add more in the future. -
2021-01-11
My sisters gift from the hospital: a baby and COVID-19
Beginning of 2021, my sister went into the hospital to give birth. In this time, COVID was at an all-time high, when everyone was afraid to leave their own home. Three days after she has given birth, she left the hospital. A few days later, she started feeling really under the weather. She thought it was postpartum pains but got tested just in case. Turns out she had contracted COVID from the hospital in the time she was giving birth. The pandemic was around, and no one was able to get away from it. As careful as you were, you never know what is going to happen. Just do your best. That is what my sisters story tells me about the pandemic. -
2021-04-20
My Story Reflecting The Impact of COVID-19 on My Life
I personally never thought for a second that the COVID-19 pandemic would have had the power to take someone close from my life. I remember waking up that one morning, thinking that it was just going to be an ordinary day. My father's phone starts ringing in his room, and he picks it up. In the living room, I remember seeing him proceed to listen and nod his head. He finally hangs up and slowly makes his way towards me. He tells me that his boss passed away alone in his sleep the night before from complications associated with heart disease as he had also been infected with COVID-19 several days before. Eddie had always been there for my dad the past four decades. He watched me grow into an adult from day one and also gave me these large birthday gifts every year. For the first time in a long time, I remember seeing pain in my father's eyes, and it was definitely something that I'll never forget. This memory of losing someone close to me will always be something that I'll always associate with the COVID-19 pandemic. I also think that losing someone close or a loved one to the pandemic says a lot about the impact a pandemic can have on both mental health and physical health. -
0000-04-14
The Start of the Pandemic for Me
The file I am submitting is of a journal I kept for the first six weeks of the pandemic sharing the different events that occurred and how they impacted me and my family. -
2020-05
My COVID-19 Experience
My experience during the peak of COVID-19 was just a ball of anxiety, nerves, some good moments, and some bad moments. The transition from always going out, being on campus, hanging out with friends, eating out to suddenly being stuffed into staying home every day for 3 months was very tough. Especially, with the mass amount of misinformation being spread about COVID-19 at the time- it was just scary. No one really knew what this virus was, new information was being released everyday, you had people who suddenly became doctors overnight and try to tell you what to do, and so on. Going to the supermarket became like this crazy mission where every inch of skin and orifice of your body had to be covered and every single little thing had to be sanitized before it was brought back into the house. There was even a point where my family wouldn't even open the windows. It was very extreme but, I don't blame them for having that fear. I was afraid too. I was home for three months straight with very little to do besides mulling over my own stressful thoughts. The news gave me anxiety. Having all my family members suddenly be home all the time led to us stepping on each other toes more often than usual. Things began to lighten up after a while, thankfully. I was given the opportunity after three months of strict quarantine to work in a food pantry for a non profit organization in my community. To finally be able to go out, see a friend or two, and give back to my community? It was a definite yes. Working in the food pantry was an extremely rewarding experience. We served almost 300 to 400 people daily, giving them free meals, groceries, and essentials. It took my mind off of a lot, especially after a rough three months. I was also glad I was able to maintain social distancing and safe mask practices throughout my time there because it was essential that I did not bring anything home to my family. Overall, my COVID-19 experience during the peak of the pandemic was just a rollercoaster of emotions. -
2022-02-27
The Covid-19 Pandemic
Covid -19 has changed how many people lived their lives. It was a hard time for everyone that lasted quite long. From being unemployed, remote learning was difficult for families. I was in my senior year of highschool when the pandemic first hit. I went from being social with my friends everyday to being home quarantined with family for months. Not only was this hard but I had to learn how to adapt to remote learning. This was not an easy task due to the fact your teacher wasn't there to give you a real classroom vibe. We did not even meet on zoom til graduation. This was very upsetting because I never had a real prom and was looking forward to it for my senior year. Being a student during the pandemic was not easy. There were times I wanted to just give up because the teachers would assign a load of work sometimes with no explanation on how to go about it. I can say I made the best out of it. Though we were not able to celebrate graduation the traditional way my highschool stool did their best and it was greatly appreciated. Throughout this whole pandemic my family lost some friends. This was heartbreaking because we could not even go visit them in the hospital or anything. My family made sure every morning my sibling and I were taking our vitamins and these natural remedies to make our immune systems stronger. We changed what we usually eat to more healthy types of foods that will benefit our body. This was a hard experience for my family but we made the best out of it. We spent months together everyday because we did not want to go out and risk anything. Lysol and Bleach became our best friends over time. Food supplies became short when you went to the supermarket and many people were losing money because they couldn't go to work. This was a hard time for many families because a lot of people suffered due to these reasons. It wasn't till a couple weeks after being in quarantine for months til the government decided to give out unemployment. This was a benefit for some familie and hard for others because they still couldn't feed their families. Our lives changed from walking everyone and seeing people's faces to seeing everyone in a mask. Many people till this day don’t feel like it's safe to leave their homes. It's been two years since the pandemic first started and now we have a vaccine that's out here. This may seem like a benefit but even if you do take the vaccine you can still contract Covid-19. This is a main reason as to why many people don’t see the point of taking the vaccine. In the beginning of the pandemic the main people who were getting the virus were older people and those who had weak immune systems. Hospitals were packed with many cases and nurses even became short staff. That was a very scary time to witness the pain in the nurses and patients faces. Overall this was a time to remember. It was many hardships but we made a huge progress to where we are today. I am glad to say I am fully vaccinated so I am doing what's best for myself. I am in college now and finally in a inperson classroom. They soon will drop the mask mandate which will be a complete change when you see people’s faces again. I am glad we are getting back to our normal lives. -
2020-03-17
A dream with a twist
Growing up, everyones dream is for school to be permanently closed. If you are not in school then your dream going to bed every night is for your work-place to be closed. Just hanging out at home watching movies and playing video games or painting or doing nothing but your favorite hobbies seems like the perfect life. This is what everyone had thought until it actually happened, but with a very, very negative twist. Even though it was not too long ago, to this exact date and for the rest of my life I will remember when this "dream lifestyle" became a horrible reality. After hearing my professors say that class might be moved onto zoom for 2 weeks and hearing my boss say that the catering hall might be closing for approximately the same amount of time, it hit me that this was going to be very, very bad. I remember being 16 years old in the heart of New York City with my friends saying that never could I imagine times square empty at any costs. Without having a hint, this was coming to an unfortunate fruition. Everyday life had become class or assignments on my laptop in the morning, then going for a long walk, then playing video games or watching tv the rest of the day. No physical contact with any other humans outside of my household. Groceries were being delivered straight from the store and it seemed this was an endless repeating cycle, simply sitting there waiting for positive news and updates. I will say that with my personal experience, I am extremely fortunate that I did not have nearly the negative time that a high percentage of people had. I believe that the reason why it was so strange was because of the sudden halt of our routines and lifestyle. During this time, I took time to reflect on everything but also to embrace and make the most of the situation. As I previously stated, I am very fortunate to go through this time with not much tragedy. I was going for long walks with the family members in my household and also bonding with friends through video games. I was learning more about stocks, cooking, fitness/health as a whole, and more. However, I do remember my father coming home everyday from 16 hour shifts for weeks being exhausted because he is a funeral director. He would come home and tell us how he was seeing first-hand something he has never seen before and what he was seeing in terms of the deaths from COVID19. This story is important to me because while I was finding positives through this tough time, it put into perspective how many, many people were going through the complete opposite with extremely tough times. A big life lesson that I learned is that even if you are finding positives in something and doing well personally, it is essential to take a step back and try to do more for the people going through tough times. This applies through every single day of life and every aspect. -
2021-02-17
The Beach
Many people consider the beach as a memorable place regardless if it was a positive or negative experience. Going to the beach had me radiating positivity; something I had not felt in a while. It was chilly day where barely anyone was there because of the weather but also the pandemic was still arise. It was a perfect place to escape your problems, yet escaping reality eventually became inevitable. Soon the funs from the New York Aquarium , Coney Island Beach, IHOP and even the Q train came to an end when what it seems like thousands of people came to my house. And soon enough my mother did too with an event that quickly changed my life and my family as a whole. This story that I have told indicates the possible outcomes of the pandemic: death. This story is important to me because it really changed me as a person and who I am today. The loss of someone you were close to is big event in your life you can never forget. It is also important to me because it made me realize that people really underestimate diseases because of how it is perceived. For COVID-19, no one would expect anyone to die unless they were old or were immunocompromised, yet it happened. It was and is still treated as something that can pass over you but it does not. It can either affect your from first hand or second hand whether you get it or not. This outcome from the pandemic is an event that you will never forget. -
2021-03-01
First Job
So I had never had a job before, which made it hard to find a job while in a pandemic. After months of trying to find a job, I found a place that took a chance with me. Getting that job helped me get out of my sad state of people telling me that I'm doing nothing with my life since I still didn't figure out what I wanted to get my bachelor's in. Also, getting that job required me to work with people, so I had improved my communication skills. Now, I feel more comfortable introducing myself to people. -
2020-04-08
Life as a full-time students and full-time worker
Some students who were doing online learning were able to manage their work/life balance more easier -
2022-02-22
The Re-emergence of Anxiety
Story describing the impact high school Model U.N. had on me and how difficult it was to readjust to life after quarantine -
2020-10-06
The Album
On every family vacation we'd ever taken, I was the designated photographer. It was my job to catch the monuments, and the murals and pictures of my brothers dancing at amusement parks. I was reluctant at first but I improved and every year when we got home, I couldn't be prouder of my little collection. It became a tradition, maybe a week or so after, to look through the album and remember the adventures we had. During those moments, life was beautiful and we were on top of the world. A few years ago as we flipped through a set of photos, my father looked at me and said that we needed to take more videos. I laughed at him but he explained that photos were never enough-you wanted to feel and see and be a part of that memory, and videos were the closest thing to it: a captured moment in time. Of course, I agreed. Even when we weren't on vacations, I was taking photos of us at weekend excursions, at the grocery store, washing our little red car...I could go on for hours and hours but today, I won't. When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, I was excited to document this new chapter in our lives which included many DIY home improvements, my failed attempt at a flower garden and sleepovers with my brothers. It was definitely an adjustment. Later on in the year, about late September, my father got sick. He was our designated shopper, our designated driver, our designated everything really so it wasn't surprising but I continued to take photos. I thought to myself, when he gets better, we'll be able to look back on this album on laugh. He spent that first week in quarantine with piles of pills and jugs of orange juice. I spent that first week peeking through the door separating us and taking photos through the window. He would always see me and wave; so much for my candid photos. His birthday rolled around almost a week later and although he was sick, he managed a bite of the worst birthday cake I've ever made but of course, he smiled. I heeded his earlier advice and took photos of his birthday card, his (failed) birthday cake, and a video of us singing to him through the door. He was getting better and life was good. About a week later, my album was filling up and I was sure it would be ending soon because we'd seen some improvements. Unfortunately, he plateaued with his recovery. In the blink of an eye, the subject of my album had gotten weak and frail, and before I could hold on to him, he slipped away. Needless to say, I was devastated-we all were and time seemed to halt. For months, I couldn't look at that album because it was a constant reminder that it didn't have the happy ending that I wanted. But now, my thoughts have changed. I miss my father every day but his passing has reminded me to hold on tight to the things that he taught me. I always remember that he'd say that he was living life and seeing good days and looking back, I'm so grateful that we have those albums as a permanent reminder of all the fun we've had, the mischief we'd gotten into and the life we'd been blessed to enjoy together. I don't want to focus on the things I've lost but instead on what I've gained and that's a greater appreciation for all the people who love and support me. Don't forget to take those photos, make sure you have the sound up when you're recording your videos, but never forget to just live in the moment. That's what this pandemic has taught me. -
2020-03-14
Beginning of COVID-19
The emergence of COVID-19 has trembled the world. At the beginning of its spread, no one knew how to handle or deal with this virus. For many months, scientists and doctors tried to find a way to treat the patients but failed. Dead bodies were loaded in a truck that was 5-6 meters long. People started to panic which resulted in fights over toilet paper and canned foods because they were stocking on for emergencies. Essential workers such as doctors, EMTs, nurses, and others were left with no masks. Some of them had to find a way to reuse the masks because they were short in proper protective equipment. Students transferred to remote learning because schools, colleges, and universities were shut down. Everything happened so fast that I did not have time to process each event on its own. After being quarantined, many families including us, thought that the world was coming to an end. Never in my life, I have seen thousands of people die on the same day. Never in my life, I have seen people fear walking close to others. Never in my life, I have seen America run short on masks, hand sanitizers, and even cleaning products. A year later, things have eased a little with the vaccine being available. However, not everything will be back to normal. -
2020-03-12
Quarantine Life
I am submitting a small glimpse of what life was life for me during Covid 19 and quarantine -
2021-01-01
A Brief Timeline
This brief timeline describes my experience during this pandemic. I decided to share my perspective because I am sure most people can relate. -
2020-03
The Pass
summary -
2020-06-06
One essential workers perspective during the covid pandemic
This was my experience as an essential worker during the Covid pandemic. -
2020-03-28
Five years took for granted
Five. This was the number of years that I was able to spend with one of the most important people in my life, my uncle. From the moment I moved here in Brooklyn, he was one of the few that made me feel welcomed. He loved me, took care of me and supported me as if we'd know each other our entire lives. He stood as a second father figure to me, and he truly always managed to put a smile on everyone's face. But, on March 28th, 2020 COVID-19 got the best of him and unfortunately passed away. I was devastated and so heartbroken. Despite how painful his death was, it taught me many valuable lessons. But, I believe the most important one is to not take each day we get to spend with our families for granted. -
2020-04-16
Happy Birthday...
Today is April 16th, 2020. Instead of waking my mom up with breakfast in bed, she sends me a photo of herself layered in protective gear. At the time my mother was working at one of the largest hospitals in Queens. She went from working four days a week to working six-seven days a week as the rates of COVID-19 hospitalizations increased. Today is her birthday and instead of celebrating life, she is surrounded by fear, death, and uncertainty. Thank you Mom for being strong and putting your life at risk as an essential worker. Happy Birthday -
2021-06-12
Renovations
During COVID-19, and how difficult things have gotten with people losing their jobs, my house had quite a few problems to contend with. First and foremost, my room was leaking; second my downstairs was also leaking, which caused some parts of the ceiling to collapse and was just a huge mess to deal with. Funny how it had to be when COVID-19 forced people to start pinching pennies, because who knew when you might have gotten laid off from work because of it. We called someone to fix it, and we thought he had found it - after paying a decent sum to get the job done - but the leak was not fixed. Water still came down, forcing my father to tear down the wall in order to get to the problem, or at least attempt it. I talk about this because a lot of people will blame COVID-19 for their misfortune, and to join them, the house did not have to be in need of some much restructuring, especially with how much it costs. Not to mention the refurbishment of our kitchen and dining room took a fair amount of money to get done. And it's been nothing but more spending. -
2021-08-02
Giving The Family Covid
One day I woke up fine and normal like every other day and I went to work. At round 2 pm that day I started getting headaches and my body was cold. It was really hot that day too while my body was cold. I told me boss I'm not feeling too well and I wanted to go home. I called my friend who works in a pharmacy my symptoms and he said its possible to be covid-19. He went to my house and waited outside with a rapid test and I met him there. We did a test in the car and after 15 minutes it came out positive. I called my dad who was in my house to come outside so I can break the news to him before the rest of my family because they would've freaked out. I told my dad that I'm positive for covid-19 and he went to setup the house for me and seclude me from everyone else. I went upstairs and I saw my family waiting for me and my uncle had his hand out to greet me and I ignored all of them without giving eye contact and went straight to my room. I rarely ever get sick from anything really. Im sitting in my room thinking I really got covid-19 thinking I'm immune and invincible because I'm a healthy 21 year old and I never get sick. Also no one in my family previously got covid I was the first. This pandemic has showed me what I'm not and I'm just like every other person. The good thing is I mentioned it to my boss and asked my friend to test me right away. This is what everyone should be doing, check up on yourself right away. -
2020-03-15
The Pandemic Student
Being a student during the COVID-19 pandemic seemed easy at first since we were all going to be at home for the rest of the Spring semester of 2020. I thought of it as a time to finally relax and slow down on classes now that we were going to be home. But I didn't expect the amount of change the pandemic actually brought to my life. I didn't realize how much I relied on my everyday school schedule to organize my daily routines. When in-person classes stopped, the first week of classes at home seemed easy. I thought I could do it. But as time passed, I realized how difficult it was to keep up with class demands as well as home demands now that both were in the same environment. Some of my classes became asynchronous, while others became live. Waking up on time became difficult when I was able to stay in the comfort of my bed the whole day. And being on my laptop for all of my classes made it easy to be distracted by other things on the internet. Being at home meant I could fall asleep in class without anyone directly seeing me. With no school schedule, such as common hours, walking to and from classes, meeting up with friends during gaps, the routine in my life seemed non-existent. I was at home all day, and my sense of order seemed to fade as the semester went on. The type of student I used to be was usually a lot more punctual, submitting assignments on time, taking notes during class, finishing homework early. But the type of student the pandemic changed me into was lazy, sleepy, tired, late in submitting assignments, more careless about classwork and homework, skipping a lot of note-taking in class, and delaying work. My orderly life, my daily routine, was now out of order and out of routine. It became very hard to be a good student during the pandemic because my lack of motivation swooped low. By Fall semester of 2020, I was already falling off track within the first two to three weeks. By the end of the semester, I even failed to submit an important final on time. Although I was becoming such a terrible student, many of my professors remained understanding, kind, and caring, giving me extended time on late assignments, and providing support when I needed it. I don't think I would have passed all of my classes if it weren't for the kindness of many of my professors. My worst semester was Spring of 2021. I had to take a writing intensive course. Although I was only taking 4 classes, that one class felt so heavy that it was the main course I was focusing on. The course also had a lab section, which would've been better done in-person. Doing in-person classes online was not the best experience. While in an in-person lab students would be working together and classwork would be done together, online we were just given directions and told to submit the classwork after working on it ourselves. It became so difficult that I ended up dropping the class and taking it again in the summer. Though it was my worst semester ever, my professors were still so kind and understanding, supporting my decision and wishing me well. Although it seemed being a student during the pandemic would be easy at the beginning, I quickly realized how far that was from the truth. The pandemic teared apart my routine, which I didn't realize how heavily I relied on. The order in my life felt close to chaotic at some point and affected so many aspects of my life: as a student, a daughter, a sister, my religion, and my social life. Right now, during the Fall 2021 semester, I'm still working on building up my routine and trying to stick to it, despite being at home. I've regained some of my motivation and try to submit assignments on time, but I don't always succeed. Balance is hard when two different parts of one's life—in my case, my school and home life—become one and the same. I had a hard time allocating appropriate time for school and appropriate time for family, chores, and self-care. Perhaps by now I've gotten a bit used to the pandemic, but still prefer in-person as it would bring back that order in my life: waking up, getting ready, going to class, finishing class, doing work during schedule gaps, going to another class, etc. Now my schedule is more like: wake up, class, eat breakfast during class, be unproductive during class gaps, go to another class, etc. And through all this, I'm also on my phone or watching something else, or talking to a family member, or doing something else distracting. However, since I've been trying to build up my routine and increase my motivation, it's been easier to pay attention and work harder in class. As a senior, I obviously want to graduate on time so that is definitely a motivational factor for me to do well this semester. Because in-person class options are now available, I look forward to bringing back order to my life next Spring semester. -
2020-03-28
Life During A Pandemic
Personal experience during the Covid-19 -
2020-03
Unimaginable Grief
[March 2020] A month in time no one would ever want to go back to. My friend and I were enjoying our day and suddenly got news that campus will be closed until further notice. It was a scary and confusing moment; before you knew it everyone was talking about the virus. We definitely underestimated the virus and saw it spread in the blink of an eye. Slowly but surely we all began to realize how serious this was and prayed day and night for it to end. Cities went on lockdown, thousands became unemployed, and families grieved the loss of loved ones suddenly taken by this evil virus. I am so fortunate enough to have my close family and friends here with me today, but that does not mean these last one and a half years did not take a toll on me mentally. We've lost many loving family friends whom we never expected to lose this early. One thing the pandemic, thankfully, taught me is to appreciate those who you love because you do not know when they can be taken away from you. As hard as this experience was, I am grateful for the ups and downs and pray for the beautiful souls lost. Rest In Peace <3 -
2020-03-11
Same Reality, New Awareness
Prior to the Pandemic, my life was like quarantining. Staying inside from Sun up till sun down unless absolutely necessary (school/laundry/grocery shopping, etc) was my life. I hardly did much physically and yet I was constantly mentally and physically exhausted. As COVID-19 began to spread around the world and billions were forced to stay inside their homes, the reactions from those who were not homebodies, surprised me. There were many people who were struggling mentally with the changes in their lives. Some now had a disrupted routine or structure, little to no social interactions, limited daily activities, and limited funds to provide for themselves or their family. As this had been my reality for so long, I was aware of how unhealthy it was but not how it could affect others. I had not realized what this type of life would look like for the average person. While I understood that other people have drastically different wants and needs than I do, their reactions to their new reality sparked new awareness in mine. -
2021-09-30
COVID-19: A new personal struggle
My experience has changed overall with this pandemic. In my paper I discussed the different aspects of how my life changed given the circumstances with work, school, and personal lifestyle. -
2021-07-12
Working during the Covid-19 Pandemic
I took a summer job in this pandemic working at a summer camp with young children. At first, I was skeptical because of the times we’re living in, and because kids just have poor habits that can cause the COVID-19 virus or any bacteria to spread. But then I just did it because it beats staying at home all day. There were many safety precautions and guidelines that took place to keep everyone safe and healthy. Any sick kids or staff were sent home and couldn’t come back until they were better. In addition, we had to check our temperatures every day, the staff had to fill out daily health surveys before arrival, we always had to have our masks on, disinfect each classroom after we use it, and wash our hands frequently. We went by a schedule, so there wouldn't be any confusion or unnecessary crowds. In terms of safety, the summer camp did a good job keeping everyone protected from the COVID-19 virus or any other sickness. Overall, the experience was different than the regular summer camp because we couldn’t do as much. But we made the best of it for both the staff and children. -
2020-05-01
The start of a pandemic that shock the medical field to its core
I have worked as a NYC paramedic for several years before the pandemic Covid-19 hit the world. As a paramedic, we were trained to deal with most situations that would happen on an emergency basis. We dealt with any situation as simple as a cut on the arm, to as complex as running a mega code on a cardiac arrest patient. When Covid-19 hit NYC, I was unaware of how bad it was going to get. At first, we thought it was a virus that was weaker than influenza, which is something we deal with on a regular basis. At this time, we would get one call a day that was related to Covid-19. I thought that everyone was over exaggerating. Over time, Covid-19 patients became more frequent, and in the matter of a month, it was the only type of call we would get. It was as if every other medical problem that people had went away. But this was because everyone that wasn't infected with Covid-19 was too afraid to go to the hospital. In the month of May 2020, things started to take a turn for the worst. People were starting to get critical on each call, where my partner and I would need to resort to extreme measures like endotracheal Intubation to help them breath. Sometimes, even intubation wouldn’t be enough, and the patient would go into cardiac arrest from the lack of oxygen in the body. It was a very difficult time for me because I felt powerless to stop people from dying to his terrible disease. In June 2020, it got so bad that the hospitals did not have capacity to accept anymore patients that came in. People were put in hallways, next to nursing stations, and hospitals had to dedicate entire floors to Covid-19 patients as they came in. Then another problem started to rear its head. My Co-workers and friends started to get sick. Those of us with families had to also make a choice, either quit their job to protect their families or live apart from them until this was all over. We did not have enough EMT’s and Paramedics to staff the ambulances we had running on any given day. Those of us who were not sick picked up anywhere from 60-90 hours a week. This struggle continues now as well. All over the world, there are not enough emergency services personal to cope with the amount of call volume that we are given each day. Over time we got adjusted to the madness and medicine advanced enough to be able to treat patients so that most did not become critical. Also, the vaccine was made available to the public and things started to get better. I shared my story to show a side of the pandemic most don’t get to experience. It shows how unprepared we were, and how we were able to prevail overtime. I will also include a video to show some insight on the pandemic that was taken with one of the companies I work with. -
2020-03-20
The huge personal challenge
The pandemic changed our lives completely. I believe that thanks to that we learned to value life more and especially personal and global hygiene. This challenge was enormous, the pandemic changed our perspective on things, this did not put us on a tightrope where no one knows what was going to happen where everything was uncertain. But I think we have overcome a large part although we are not free from anything. -
2020-06-01
Covid-19 Reflection [MISSING MEDIA]
My days during the covid-19 pandemic. -
2020-04-22
Enjoy Every Second Life Presents to You
I remember when the pandemic first started just like it was yesterday. It was a very frightening time to be alive. A couple months before the pandemic, I got my license. I couldn’t have done it without my driving instructor. He was a family friend that we’ve known for a very long time. He was full of charisma and always energetic. When he found out that I passed my driving test, he promised to take me out to a local restaurant and celebrate. Everytime we would schedule a time to go to the restaurant, something would either come up on my end or his end. We were always cancelling on each other. March came around, and I went to his driving school site to pick up some paperwork. We were talking about the pandemic not knowing how serious it really was. We scheduled our lunch towards the end of March. Everything was cancelled due to quarantine. I didn’t hear from him or see him for about a month. We found out that he had passed from Covid-19. That changed my whole perspective on the virus. I began taking it very seriously and took every precaution I could take against the virus. What they say is true about people not taking the virus seriously unless someone close to you gets affected by it. You wouldn’t expect someone with such a good heart to be taken off this earth so sudden. -
2020-04-03
Light to the Darkness
This picture I'm submitting is a picture of the rosary I've had hanging on the headboard of my bed since when I had covid. On April 3, 2020 I woke up to have some banana pancakes and my tea and discovered I couldn't taste anything and then tried to smell my perfumes and couldn't smell anything either. I knew it was covid. I was afraid and at night I'd cry and be anxious to the point where my anxiety made it hard to breathe and would think it was because of the virus. It was then that I realized my faith lacked. I got out of bed and went to get that rosary hanging with the rest that my mom had and I started praying. For the next couple of days leading to Easter Sunday, I'd pray and feel comfort knowing I had my rosary there. It made my days with the virus, bearable. A year and a half later, I still have my rosary hanging there. It has helped make everyday bearable and reminds me to continue having faith. -
2020-03-20
The blurry year
I just started at Brooklyn College as a transfer student from Citytech. The semester was only like 5 weeks in when we started seeing reports of the Covid 19. Then the school closed for a day and we were told it only be for a short amount of time, we all know how that went. I haven't been on campus since that last day. There was so much unknown at the time with everything. How long we were going to be away from school, what was the deal with Covid 19, how dangerous was it, and how we were going to survive. At that point, everything closed, and the city was so quiet for the first time in my life. I came out a different person after the lockdown. It was a scary time for a lot of people. It felt like everyone was struggling with something. My biggest thing was just trying to make the best of the situation. and that's what I still do to this day. -
2020-03-25
The life during pandemic
The life difference before and during the pandemic -
2020-02-14
COVID-19: From Italy To New York
In February of 2020, from the 14th to the 22nd, I was on a school trip in Italy. It's safe to say I was having the best time of my life, until I became ill towards the end of the trip. I felt extremely lethargic and fatigued, my nose and throat were as stuffed as could be, my voice was gone, and my body was consistently hot. It wasn't until I got home from my trip that I suspected my illness was COVID-19, because I was informed that the exact day I returned home from Italy, Venice went on lockdown. I had been in Venice at the beginning of my trip. My suspicions heightened once my mother, father, and sister all got COVID-19 several days later, yet I was healthy as a horse again. In the weeks I had been quarantined with them, I hadn't gotten sick again. Now, this is my earliest memory from quarantine, and quite frankly one of the only memories since the days began to mesh together. I remember time no longer felt real, and I tried to pass it with as many activities as possible. The family began solving puzzles and playing more board games. I was playing more of my instruments, including piano and ukulele. I listened to countless albums and new artists. But, in all of the good, there still remained some low points such as overeating and inactiveness. I'm sure everybody can find pros and cons in their quarantine experience, definitely more cons for some. But, I just wanted to share what I remembered from my own experience. It's the story we always told people when they asked if we ever got infected; I'd say I'm pretty sure I came home from the best trip in the world only to infect my family and almost immediately go into lockdown. -
2020-04-10
Good Friday
It was early Friday morning and I could not fall back asleep. I kept hearing murmurs from the room next door. My stomach began rumbling and I began to worry. Something was definitely off. My feet touched the cold floor and my hands grazed the doorknob but someone else on the other side beat me to opening the door. My dad's face was covered in fear and worry. I asked him what was wrong and like parents do they shield you to protect you from bad news. He told me everything was fine and to go back to bed. Minutes passed but it seemed like hours and I still could not find sleep. My dad burst into the door and told me to call an ambulance for my mother because she was having trouble breathing. My hands began to shake, my body was trembling as I picked up my phone and dialled 911. I stood in my parents room watching over my mother and her saying her last goodbyes to my brother and I. I could not even manage the words out of my mouth as I spoke to the person over the phone. It all happened so fast. My younger brother and I were imploring my mom to hold on and that help was on the way. Within minutes the paramedics arrived. They checked her vital signs and determined my mother was fine and was having a panic attack. That was the day my life changed. Everyone in the world was going through this. Who would have thought we all would have been in a lockdown. My mother became overwhelmed with the situation. Everytime you would turn on the TV, Covid-19 was always headlining. Hearing ambulances come and go every so often right outside your apartment. Sometimes even hearing people cry at the top of their lungs because a family member had passed away. People losing jobs and not being able to work. It was hard hearing all of this. It became such a burden to her that she herself got ill. However, going through this experience helped my family appreciate one another even more. We helped each other out and we enjoyed the small things whether it was making a joke or watching a movie. Funny enough it happened right before Easter as well and my mother being religious and all saw it as a sign. In a way we did have a lot to be thankful for. A second chance to rebuild our family. -
2021-09-27
Unexpected
It's a descriptive story of how covid has affected my life and its important to me because it has a long term affect. -
2020-12-09
Life in the Pandemic
My life in the pandemic was tough. I couldn't work so I was not able to pay my bills, I like the rest of the world during lockdown had to sit at home bored out of my mind because nobody could leave. I was very scared for my mom when she got covid because she had oxygen issues and also heart issues. Going to school during the pandemic really bothered me because I lost a lot of focus and became very lazy when it came to handing in assignments. I would rather physically go onto campus because when I am actually listening to the professors' talk, it makes it so much easier to understand and to focus. -
2020-03-15
A Pause on Life
It was March 2020 when the world found out about this new virus called the corona virus (Covid19). This virus hit the news, and my parents began to worry. It was still the beginning doctors were beginning to learn about it, not many people knew the much about it. On March 15th I started my day like any ordinary day. I had a salad for lunch, while eating my salad I realized I couldn’t taste anything, but I didn’t think much about it. At this time the symptom of losing taste and smell was not a symptom for Covid 19 yet. I mentioned it to my mom about me not being able to taste and she answered by saying “that’s so strange dad can’t smell or taste either.” I still didn’t think much about it I thought we both have a cold, but I thought it was strange that me and my father can’t taste or smell. I soon realized that it was a symptom of Covid 19. After realizing I panicked and called a doctor to get tested and sure enough me and both my parents tested positive for Covid 19. I was in shock because it was so early and I didn’t think that I out of everyone in the world would catch the virus. And just like that the world paused, business closed, restaurants closed, you couldn’t be around your friends or extended families, and we all had to stay home. Unfortunately, the timing was not in my favor. I was planning on getting married on June 4th, however at the time I wasn’t worried, I kept thinking to myself this virus will go away there will be a vaccine and by the time June would come and I can have my dream wedding. As time passed, I realized my dream wedding would be crushed. It was a hard time, every day in quarantine my wedding plans were put on hold and I wasn’t allowed to see my fiancé. I cancelled my invitation order and altered it to 20 invitations instead of 700. I wasn’t allowed to get my dress altered because everything was closed. My father had to cancel the venue. After being let down I came to a conclusion that I still want to get married on that date with just my close family. And so, it happened. I replanned a wedding to my grandmothers’ backyard. I had my ceremony with only my close family and afterwards my friends joined. It wasn’t the wedding I was supposed to have but it was the best wedding I ever had. At the end of the day it taught me a lesson a lesson that life isn’t about the external objects or flamboyant events, but being surrounded by the people that love and care for you is all that matters. I was so happy and so appreciative that I was able to have the most perfect wedding. I believe Covid 19 was a wake-up call for the world. It allowed people to focus and work on themselves, realize what the true important things in life are, and to understand the significance of life. -
2020-02-05
Dancing through the Pandemic
I have never experienced a pandemic like COVID-19, most of us have not. When we were told to stay home, quarantine and social distance life just became static. I moved into somewhat of a virtual reality, taking online classes and working from home. However, being home everyday without any socializing or going to the gym became really depressing and I had a hard time focusing on my work. One day my sister and I were sitting on the couch, over with pandemic life and she says "let's have a dance party". We blasted music throughout our apartment for hours and just danced all the pressure and stress out. We did this at least 3 times a week for months during the most difficult times of the pandemic. It became something we looked forward to. It was the best decision we have ever made. Not only could we destress but we had the time of our lives and it brought us closer as a family.