Given that HNers are more likely to spend time on their own I’m wondering on how fellow HNers are coping with all the stress and anxiety.
It doesn't help that both my husband and I clearly have a light case of the virus. It's a mild fever and a cough, and it appears to be getting better. (Certainly we are taking no chances! And have been in the house for 8 days already.) But feeling crappy only adds to the difficulties.
And yet I know we're the lucky ones. We both have worked at home for decades, so the "lifestyle" is nothing new; we aren't in danger of losing our incomes; we have health insurance; and we have cash in the bank.
One thing that has helped is setting up regular Zoom meetings to get together with friends. No agenda, no "let's try to concentrate on work" chat, just... hanging out together.
As Spider Robinson wrote so eloquently: Shared joy increases, shared pain decreases.
I haven't been sleeping well, because of the stress. I'm kept awake at night by the idea I'm already infected by a virus which could kill me in the next couple weeks...
I live in a house with two others, both of which still have to go to work, and I'm in an "at risk" group because I have bad lungs.
The worry that one of them may have accidentally brought the virus into the house stresses me out, and until this is over - until I'm not a danger - I can't visit with my family, who are all older than myself, and even more vulnerable.
All my friends have chosen to quarantine as well. The right action, but it still hurts. It's only been 12 days, and I already feel so alone. To think about this being the next 12-18 months is just incomprehensible.
I don't know how I'll handle it. I keep alternating between depression, anger, and feeling nothing at all.
I had really believed this was going to be the year I'd make things turn around for me. I'd been making a lot of steps in the right direction - self-improvement and all that...
I wasn't prepared for it to get worse. At least not on this scale.
We had a blackout last night, and fish supplier messed up delivery over the weekend because of the broken supply chain. There's been trouble but that's fine. The kids were scared so they found comfort with the grandparents.
It might be a cultural thing though. It seems harder on the West, because we see movies like Contagion suggesting that society would break down and people would trample each other, riot, loot. Maybe the reason toilet paper sold out is because it's a way to cling to society. Anxiety is contagious.
I think there's been a healthy level of fear in Malaysia, with people keeping 1 meter apart in stores, everyone buying bread instead of eating out. It's been easier to shop for groceries and work. There are citizen calls for a full China-style lockdown. Some apartment complexes are doing "concerts", basically group karaoke blaring loud music, led by the person with the biggest speakers. We're experimenting with recipes, ways to replace lattes with instant coffee, and lots of friends I haven't seen for years are playing games online together.
I could get used to this; society feels too crowded and yet fragmented otherwise. But now it feels like we've come together as one big family. A related book is Tribe, by S. Junger, who suggests that people are happiest in difficult times, and all that is gone when society returns to normal.
I am Danish, and while our authoritise are less terrible than those in the US, that is not a high bar. We can't get the test kits needed, but our minister of health turned a huge offer down. We didn't close the borders until long after we had community spread, etc.
If there was something active I could do (ie not feel-good stuff like running GPU time for research) and somebody could explain to me exactly how we can get out of this in a couple of months, that would be helpful.
At this point I just don't see anything changing, except getting worse, for the next several months and, frankly, I don't see how the society can survive that.
We're trying to stay in contact with friends and family as much as possible. We text and call more to just chill.
We're also very much aware of our priviliged position. We're both in software engineering and our jobs are secure for the forseeable future. We got a pile of cash in the bank and are properly insured. Working from home is not a problem at all.
One nasty side effect of working from home and not getting out much is that the days start to blend. I can barely keep track of what day of the week it is. All the days of the week look the same.
Signed a new contract in January and was supposed to start in April, moving countries. Now my flight is canceled and even if it weren’t I’d be unable to enter the country since all visas have been voided. Moving company canceled on me (no money back also, claiming force majeure). Have to leave my apartment by the end of the month and have absolutely no idea what to do. My family is in another different country as well but it currently seems impossible to get me and my belongings there. Have little savings and after a month in a motel I’d be broke :(
hang in there.
I try to follow a routine daily - get 10 minutes of meditation in, at least 25-30 minutes of workout in my tiny room. Learning to play guitar as well, now that I have some more time back.
Focusing on my work though...That's a whole different story - that's gone to shit.
Also doesn't help that I've been planning on pulling the trigger on an engagement ring but now can't risk it. Have just barely enough savings that if one of us did lose our jobs we'd be ok until we find something else, but not much more than that.
I live alone, in a tiny apartment. Usually that's not a huge issue since I live not too far from a beautiful beach and mountains.
But being stuck inside (i live in France) I'm starting to relapse into depression. I have a lot of anxiety about being alone, about the possibility that I will be potentially let-go. About suicidal thoughts etc..
I was doing better, but last week set me back by a lot. I'm scared I will not survive this situation if it lasts for months.
Try to establish a routine. Exercise and opening the blinds is helping me to cope with isolation.
Also, limit your news consumption. Newspapers and other mass-media lives on the fears of consumers.
My biggest problem at the moment is my flatmate. She’s been very anxious about this whole thing and is guzzling the social-media misinformation, FUD and conspiracy theories 24/24.
please try to convince your flatmate (as I do everyone around me) that the media will gladly firehose useless panic mongering, as long as it keeps people around past the commercial break. it's difficult to disconnect, but our mental health depends on it. take in what you need to know for the day, and no more.
I am sure I will eventually get infected but I am not too worried. I am young and somewhat healthy, and I am never in contact with anyone old or particularly at risk.
The thing I am most afraid of is the impending economic depression.
I need to laugh or mediate. I don't want to talk to the neighbours or friends for fear I'll burst out crying.