This year has been rough for all of us. Especially having to stay home and miss out on our social lives. Quarantining and staying self-isolated isn’t necessarily a great way of growing up. For a lot of us, being at home, away from people for a long period of time can really hurt us mentally, and isolation has many effects on how a person acts, ranging from feeling lonely to downright depression. 

From my personal experience with the months that I’ve been stuck at home, it hasn’t been fun. From time to time, I’ve been experiencing heavy moments where I don’t feel like myself. Some days feel really different from others, and days seem to be moving a lot faster than usual. It just doesn’t feel right. 

According to the official Center For Disease Control (CDC) website, social isolation can have a multitude of effects, such as poor social relationships, along with higher rates of depression and anxiety. Social Isolation was also associated with about a 50% increased risk of dementia. Alongside this, another study commenced by Professor Julianne Holt-Lunstad of Brigham Young University, found that having a lack of social connection increases health risks to about the equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. 

I’ve been combating some of these symptoms myself because being alone at home all the time, unable to see friends, is difficult. In the meantime, I have been keeping myself busy for the long year of isolation that I’ve been through. I’ve mainly been listening to music, working on my homework or focusing on social media. I miss my friends, and it’s been a while since I’ve been anywhere near a large group of people. 

The year is coming to an end, though, and with the end of 2020 I’m hoping to see the end of having to be stuck home as well.