I Had to Self-Isolate Before COVID-19, Here is What You Need to Know

This current world of isolation is new for a lot of people, but not for me. I have been living in it for months since pain from endometriosis sent me home from a summer program in 2019 and kept me inside most of the time. Now, students across the country are beginning to have experiences mimicking mine. I’m hoping someone can learn from my situation and survive their self-isolation.

When my symptoms got worse in October, I found myself being pulled between the two most powerful forces known to college students: drive and laziness. If I wasn’t cleaning out every basket I have had on the shelves in my room since sixth grade, I was watching a whole season of Grey’s Anatomy in one sitting. I would teach myself units of my next calculus class, or I would simply stare at a wall until I fell asleep. I only recently realized that these two modes are equally exhausting. It is important to keep busy and to relax, but self-care was the missing piece. I started doing my nails, reading books, coloring and getting exercise whenever my body would allow. I also made washing my face as much of a priority as washing my hands is now. I started to find a nice balance of completing tasks that made me feel like I was getting something useful done, ones that embraced my inner sloth, and ones that reminded me that I was a person worth taking care of. I still find myself going back to my old ways, but when you’re living in isolation you need to put yourself first and embrace the idea of self-care. 

Sadly, I discovered self-care too late. Before, I was sucked into a darkness filled with pajamas and void of the all-important face wash and deodorant. It was a scary place to be. I completely dropped all productive activities and spent my days in my room making good use of each of my family’s streaming services, napping when my eyes became tired from all the exertion required to keep them open. With the help of some medication and my encouraging parents, I started to come back to the real world. It is important to reach out to family and friends. We all need human contact and to remember that our situations are only temporary. Facetime a good friend, play games with family or roommates, call that distant relative or friend who seemed to drop off the face of the Earth. I was forced to get up, shower, wash my face and get dressed in order to interact with others. Once I felt human again, the rest fell into place. I am doing much better now, but fear others will go down the same rabbit hole that I did. Self-care and maintaining relationships with friends and family saved me.

My personal self-isolation almost came to an end about two weeks ago when I was about to start volunteering at a local hospital because I was mostly healed from a previous surgery. Then COVID-19 came along and stopped my plans, but this too shall end. Stay safe and take care of yourself.

 

To learn more about the information in this article, please use the following sites:

Endometriosis 

Depression 

COVID-19 CDC guidelines

• COVID-19
• self-isolation
• Social Distancing