We could not find your account using Instant Login.

Please try again, or contact your system administrator or customer service.

OK

Addysen’s Story

Me Against the Pandemic

It almost feels like none of this is real, and that this isn’t really happening. I can’t imagine myself living in a pandemic. Although I can see the world dealing with a virus that we have barely any information about. I can see the world go into full panic mode, and see people trying to buy every last item in a grocery store that they can get their hands on. I can see nurses and doctors caring for every patient they can while protecting themselves at the same time. I can see almost everything being shut down, and having limited physical contact with others. I can see people becoming unemployed, because their place of work is no longer open. During all this I am stuck inside my house most of the time. Therefore I do believe that there are ways to cope with all this. Spending more time at home can make a person more creative to help them cope with situations.

When people are bored at home it causes them to think more, which results in creativity. When the quarantine started my sister had to file for unemployment due to her salon shutting down. When she had nothing to do she bought this diamond art. It’s this paper that has a picture with numbers on it, and you have to match the colored diamond with that number. This helps keep her busy whenever she gets bored. She has also introduced it to my mom, and she likes to work on it as well. My mom usually likes to work on it when it’s her day off. My mom is a nurse at a hospital in Minneapolis. She works on the floor that is considered the COVID-19 floor. She wears a mask and gloves all day, and tries to care for as many patients as she can. Both my mom and sister have been creatively dealing with their stress.

Creativity can help with stress and anxiety to help a person calm down. Ever since school has been shut down since spring break, all the students have to do online schooling. It’s been stressful, because I’m one of those people that need to learn hands-on. Even when I’m not physically at school I still get quite a bit of homework. Therefore to deal with my stress I have decided to paint. Painting is what helps calm my anxiety, and ease my stress. I have even made a little collage on one of the walls of my bedroom. They are all just paintings that I have created so far, but I plan to expand it even more. The quarantine has also given me more time to work on my makeup skills, and to get better at them. I’ve been practicing my eyeshadow, and using different colors, patterns, and creating all kinds of looks.

People can explore their creative abilities with more time on their hands. I have seen all over social media people spending their time doing things they haven’t done before. People are trying new things or doing something they haven’t done in awhile. I have seen people cut or dye their hair. I’ve seen people craft their clothes, shoes, and accessories. People have also found ways to hang out while being six feet apart, like parking trucks or vans in a circle. People do puzzles, redecorate their rooms, draw in coloring books, and even do some cooking. I think that with all this time on our hands we can do more things. I also see girls on Instagram posting some really cute selfies, and being creative with their photos. All of these are ways a person can be occupied at home when they are bored.

Although we have the COVID-19 and quarantine to deal with, we shouldn’t allow it to not let us still have fun. We should all do our part in staying six feet apart to help keep each other safe. We also need to make sure that if we aren’t feeling good then we should stay at home to quarantine ourselves. We should also try to keep ourselves busy so that we don’t affect our physical, mental, or emotional health in a bad way. By being creative we can help with our boredom and our stress during this pandemic. When we are staying at home we get bored, but little things like coloring can help. When you’re stressed even doing a puzzle can take your mind off of it. We need to know that our phones aren’t always going to entertain us, because even I can get bored when I’m on my phone constantly. We all just need to play our part in staying home, while others go out to do their jobs. Remember being bored is a good thing, because it allows a person to think more. Being creative at home can make this quarantine much easier.

—Addysen

Share your own story here. Sharing stories is a powerful way to connect with other people. Be part of the Teen Health & Wellness Personal Story Project—like Addysen did above—and share your story about successfully dealing with or overcoming a challenge.