Like many people during the rising positive cases of COVID-19, I fell victim to being exposed to the virus and needing to quarantine for fourteen days. Thankfully I myself was never infected, however, that didn’t make staying inside during the beautiful, and atypical, St. Louis weather any easier.
But quarantining doesn’t always have to be as dreadful as it sounds. Personally, I love having a routine and being active throughout the day, so I had to find a way to keep doing that in my college apartment with my roommate. I thought I could share some of my ideas to help those in my position.
I started the mornings with some sort of workout (luckily, there are so many videos online because of quarantine!) and enjoying my coffee and breakfast—something I don’t usually do during my busy schedule of running out the door for classes.
Then throughout the day I would go to online classes, do homework and study until about 6 pm. There always is more to do, and I have the tendency to feel that I am unproductive if I have free time and I’m not filling it with something. I had to remind myself, that just because I couldn’t go anywhere, doesn’t mean I have to get ahead on everything possible.
In the evening, my roommate and I would cook dinner together – homemade pizzas, pasta, and desserts. I absolutely love cooking and baking, but never had time, or rather never made time for it. After dinner I would relax with yoga, meditation or reaching out to family and friends I hadn’t spoken to in a while.
I had a couple books to read, more meals to try out, and assignments to finish, but somehow two weeks went by and none of those were done. And that is okay. Our job during quarantine is to protect ourselves, and the community around us, everything else is just a bonus.
Even after this is all over, I hope to maintain some of these activities I learned during quarantine – reaching out to family and friends, making time for exercise, and sipping on my coffee slowly first thing in the morning. But until then, let’s wear our masks, stay safe, and be kind to ourselves.