Albert Einstein once said, “Man is, at one and the same time, a solitary being and a social being.” Everyone has embraced this quote to some extent while in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of us like being alone, and some of us feel a constant need to be around others. Perhaps quarantine was a miracle to some people, a disaster for others. The truth is that a miracle can turn into a disaster, and a disaster can turn into a miracle. Like everything existential in the universe, nothing has only two sides to it, but a blend of both. However, I think we can all agree that having a mixture with mostly miraculous ingredients is better than one with mostly disastrous ingredients. But, how in the world can you make that happen?
I still remember the feeling of disbelief and blankness when I first found out that life as I knew it would suddenly halt just like that. Before the pandemic, I was an extremely busy person who had extracurricular activities at least five days a week. Frankly, I always felt that my schedule was a bit too jam-packed, so quarantine was initially a chance for me to relax. For the first few weeks, school work and piano were pretty much the only ventures I took on. As a person who is 75% introverted and 25% extroverted according to the Myers Briggs personality test, I honestly didn’t feel too shabby being in isolation. I was surviving, and I was keeping up. That was enough for me. Nonetheless, as the days rolled on in the same fashion and routine as the days before, I was beginning to feel drained of both physical and mental energy. It felt like my mind was constantly enveloped with a thick swath of dust and cloud. I realized that this was because I was trapped in identical cycles of waking up, eating, work, music, and sleep every single day. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the key to turning your quarantine life into a miracle: variety.
Variety can mean different things to different people, specifically those who lean towards the extrovert side of the continuum compared to those who lean towards the introvert side. Quarantine is not just about isolation. It’s also about uncertainty and facing intense changes. That’s when the memes on social media sites which joke about extroverts going crazy and introverts living their best life in quarantine no longer become a joking matter, because coping with those things cannot be taken lightly. The essentials of life are the same for everyone: going to bed and waking up at a reasonable time, eating well, drinking well, etc. However, the importance of understanding YOURSELF and how YOU cope best cannot be emphasized enough.
As an extrovert, the obvious way to cope would be to arrange virtual meetings and/or calls with family and friends. Tying this to variety, it’s also vital for extroverts to be active and engage in activities that are exciting and stimulate positive emotions. Extroverts should feel free to go wild with their imaginations. Some extrovert-suited activities could include exploration of culinary/home/artistic improvements as well as hiking, skiing, dancing, and even just plain walking.
On the other hand, despite how introverts gain energy by being away from other people, they are social beings too. Introverts can adapt to being in quarantine better than extroverts, but that doesn’t mean they don’t go through any challenges. In fact, introverts can be surprised at how much they take small conversations and chatting with neighbours or friends for granted. Therefore, it’s equally important for them to maintain their social contacts and well-being, just on a less frequent level than extroverts. Introverts can achieve variety in their quarantine life by spending time to develop their passions and hobbies. As an introvert myself, I was able to complete five extremely complex colour-by-number pages in just one week while still maintaining contact with my friends through weekly Zoom meetings.
An often overlooked personality trait is perfectionism. In quarantine, perfectionists are one of the most vulnerable groups of people to develop mental health issues, including anxiety and depression. Perfectionists constantly strive to learn more, to do more, to achieve more almost to the point where it can be described as an obsession. They should work on shifting their focus and measures of achievement on things like family, friends, joy, and compassion. In addition, if you’re someone who lives with people who have conflicting personalities, it’s essential for everyone to openly express their thoughts and feelings to each other to reach an optimal compromise. Ultimately, keep in mind that you are the one who has power over yourself and your choices, so use that power wisely.
Variety can have different levels too. You are a living human being who exists in the world. What is it that you want to do, say, feel, hear, think, learn, or even touch and smell? You may only come up with one or two ideas, or you may come up with tens of ideas. Your ideas may be small, and they may be big. Perhaps you want to smell cookies baking in the oven. Perhaps you want to feel the rush of exhilaration as you go skiing/sledding down a hill. Perhaps you want to learn about the history of the entire world. Perhaps you want to think about a STEM career, which was something I did. I ended up learning more about chemistry and biology in the span of a few months than I ever did in eight years of schooling. Encourage yourself to pursue at least one different idea every day, small or big. If you really enjoy an idea and have confidence that you can commit to it for more than just one day, you might end up coming out of quarantine as a brand new person. Most importantly, you will come out of quarantine knowing that you can adapt to anything that comes in your way, as both a social and solitary human being.
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Resources
Kecmanovic, J. (2020, April 29). Quarantine survival tips for extroverts and perfectionists - and those who live with them. Retrieved February 6, 2021, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/extroverts-introverts-perfectionists-coronavirus-home/2020/04/16/6d73d258-8014-11ea-8013-1b6da0e4a2b7_story.html
Dobson, M. (2020, April 01). Mental Health Wellness Tips for Quarantine. Retrieved February 6, 2021, from https://www.thejunipercenter.com/mental-health-wellness-tips-for-quarantine/
TOP 25 SOCIAL BEING QUOTES: A-Z Quotes. (n.d.). Retrieved February 6, 2021, from https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/social-being.html