The Millstone Times March 2021

KIDS

Teenagers vs. Covid-19 By, Surabhi Ashok

T his may be a new year but not a new slate. Although there is a new hope regarding the coronavirus, people cannot easily escape the chang- es 2020 made on their lives. Teenagers, especially, have had to greatly adjust to their new lifestyles. Covid-19 has greatly affected many teens’ mental health. Having our daily routines disrupted and being in isolation is not easy for many of us. Social- izing is an important part of our lives, and it can be lonely to stay at home and away from our friends. When these feelings arise, I think it’s helpful to remember that this isolation is allowing others to be safe. It is also helpful to contact peers as calling or texting them can definitely alleviate some of that loneliness. Teens have also had to make a great adjustment regarding school. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many school districts have opted to do remote learning, which means that students log onto conferences and class calls with their teachers directly from their homes. Other schools have started hybrid learning, in which some days students would go to school, under many precautions, and on the other days, they would learn from home. All of this is so different from just a year ago that it can become a stressful experience. Students like me often undergo a lack of motivation along with an overwhelming amount of assigned work. It can be hard to concentrate and focus during class. Teens are constantly on their computers, staring at screens all day long. In addition to these problems, someone might be going through something at the same time. For example, a family member could have Covid-19. Many teens, in order to adjust to these changes in their life, have created a schedule. A schedule consisting of many different activities helps make sure that every day doesn’t feel the exact same. People are trying to get accus- tomed to this new lifestyle. Other parts of a teenager’s routine have been modified as well. Many high school students join more clubs and other activities now because they don’t have to worry about transportation with the meetings online. Sports have also taken on a new form. For the districts that didn’t cancel sports, every- thing was postponed instead. For example, while the fall sports generally start over the summer, this school year they started late September at Mon- roe Township High School. When I asked a local teen from MTHS about the adjustments made to sports, they said, “For cross country, we would wear masks while standing, stretching, and anytime we stopped moving. But while we ran, we would take them off... It was definitely hard to wear a mask while exercising. It was hard to get used to. We always had to be con- scious about where we were standing as well.” Other changes were the re- duction of the number of races and spectators of meets, the mandatory fill- ing out of questionnaires, and the temperature checks before every practice. Personal changes are not the only thing to affect teenagers. The national and even global concern regarding the coronavirus health situation gener- ates this anxiety that makes it feel like the pandemic will never end. In this case, remember that a vaccine has recently been released, and eventually most of the public will receive it. Things will get better, but until then ev- eryone must continue to wear masks and social distance as best as they can.

I asked a fellow teenager from Monroe, Hiba Siddiqui, to answer a few questions about her own experience with this pandemic: How has the pandemic changed your life? The pandemic has changed my life because it has caused me to adapt to a new “normal”. I’ve learned how to deal with many ups and downs. There have been dark times, including when I’ve struggled with mental health and I’ve seen so many people close to me being negatively affected as well. However, lockdown has allowed me to pursue different activities and find other things that I'm passionate about. I've learned how to knit and crochet and have spent a lot of time bonding with my family. How are you adjusting to the effects of the coronavirus? I have learned to force myself to adapt to the new normal of the coronavi- rus. There are so many changes that have come, especially related to school. I think everyone is struggling to balance their mental health with school. Any advice to your fellow peers? Some advice I would give to my peers is to use this free time to do some- thing productive. It might seem like an endless drought, but find something to spend your free time with. For example, I took up crocheting, and I re- decorated my room. Do you think you will act the same as you did before the pan- demic occurred once we go back to normalcy? Is there any be- havior/practice that you’ve acquired that you think will persist even after quarantine? I can’t imagine acting the same way I did before the pandemic. I feel like so much of my daily life has changed, especially in regard to sanitation. I look back at how we used to go bowling and use the same bowling balls as every- one else with no care in the world for the diseases we might get. I believe I will continue to have an increased wariness of germs and will continue to wear a mask on some occasions even after quarantine ends.

36 The Millstone Times

March 2021