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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.

Coronavirus is affecting me right now not that bad.<strong> I live in a very rural village</strong>. Not even considered a town.<strong> Many</strong> of the residences of the town are republicans so they<strong> do not wear masks. Many places also do not require masks.</strong> It has been an interesting experience. I feel as though<strong> people in my small town are not too worried about covid because there are not many cases</strong> where I am at.<strong> However, I did have covid for an entire month.</strong> I had to stay at my house away from the rest of society.<strong> I had no symptoms but I just tested positive. It was extremely frustrating because I did not feel sick</strong>. I wanted to go out and enjoy the world.<strong> Also, my parents are divorced so I could not go see my mom or step-dad.</strong> My place of employment would not let me return until I tested negative so they kept testing me and I just kept testing positive.<strong> I missed my mom's wedding dress shopping along with many other things.</strong> I feel like <strong> The biggest frustration for me personally about the pandemic is that my mental health has gotten way worse.</strong> I feel so much more sad and anxious. Now that we are slowly opening back up I have started having panic attacks and shaking when I am out in public. If I go to a restaurant I have to sit with my back to a wall or I freak out. I believe that the pandemic caused this because I am no longer used to social interactions. It is so infuriating because I just want to feel normal again. <strong> Another thing that was hard for me during the pandemic was that I ran cross country.</strong> This was very difficult for me originally because I never have been a runner. So being able to breathe was already hard. Then when covid hit we had to wear face masks during our meets. This meant <strong>we had to run just over three miles while wearing a facemask. I believe that this made me a better runner but it was very hard to get used to.</strong> I also saw other people get really sick because of the mask mandate. People who I knew as amazing runners would throw up after running because the mask made it that much more difficult to run with. Finally, one last thing that I thought was important to mention about how<strong> the pandemic has me realize how important an income is. I saw so many people struggle because they did not have an income. My dad and I worked for healthcare companies so we were always able to work</strong> during the pandemic because we were needed.<strong> I saw people not be able to buy groceries and such. It made me so much more generous</strong>. I gave people money for groceries along with my dad. It made me realize how lucky I was to have a job. Not only to have a job but to be making extra because I was considered an essential worker.