The Covid-19 pandemic is effectively changing every single facet of the world. It’s changed how learning will be completed, how we can interact with people, and the medical world since it’s discovery. With those changes, I have been experiencing some stress as I attempt to adjust to online learning and the specific obstacles that come with that. For example, I am having some difficulty managing my time at the moment as my usual schedule and routine have needed to be readjusted completely. However, within the past week, as these online classes have started, I feel like it is now a little easier to structure a routine, as I now have something to build that routine upon.
Other than the stresses that go along with school, I am also extremely stressed about my loved ones during this time. As I live farther away from many of my elderly relatives, it has been very frustrating knowing that I can’t help them or spend time with them during this tough time. Overall, I’ve been trying to practice social distancing as much as I can as this class has allowed me to further understand the importance of that act during times such as these. Along with social distancing, I’ve been washing my hands consistently and trying to avoid touching my face whenever I can. While I understand why UNC needed to move to a remote learning model, I am deeply upset that I won’t be able to spend one of my favorite times of the year with my friends in Chapel Hill.
While I have found that there are many things to stress about during this time, I have also found and adopted ways to combat that stress to ensure that I stay as healthy as possible during this time. Some of the ways in which I have coped with stress these past few weeks is exercising, reading, cooking, as well as “zooming” with my friends from school. All of these ways have ultimately prevented many freak-outs in the past few weeks and I recommend them to anyone who asks what I do to cope with the changes brought on during this time! As this time is so daunting for all of us, I try to remind myself that I am not in this alone. We all can contribute to making this situation better by practicing social distancing, washing our hands, and practicing many other protocols professionals have recommended. If we all practice these protocols and realize how effective they are, then I believe that we can flatten the curve and hopefully come out of this more united than we were before.
Also, to whoever is reading this: I hope you are doing well during this hectic time. I hope you are safe and with loved ones or at least can be in contact with a loved one during all of this. Thank you for all the work that you do with this class and beyond!
Hannah's Microbiology Blog 