I would never doubt Percy's wisdom, and think I (at 52 last spring) appreciated the jolt of early Covid on a few levels; the novelty of the crisis, particularly after years of the political debacle; the new challenges and the adrenaline rush of the fear response; the sense of purpose I suddenly had again around being a mother (my teenagers seemed fragile and in need of more active parenting than they had in a few years). But as time wore on and the long cold winter happened and adrenaline gave way to cortisol, a real depression and isolation and anxiety settled around me. Already an introvert, I had my interaction levels dialed down pretty far, and when they were eliminated almost completely, the bottom started to fall out a bit. You go through the aftermath of a hurricane as part of a community -- we went through Covid isolated from our communities. I am feeling and seeing a lot of "Post Covid Stress Disorder" now, as people renegotiate their terms of engagement with their worlds.
I would never doubt Percy's wisdom, and think I (at 52 last spring) appreciated the jolt of early Covid on a few levels; the novelty of the crisis, particularly after years of the political debacle; the new challenges and the adrenaline rush of the fear response; the sense of purpose I suddenly had again around being a mother (my teenagers seemed fragile and in need of more active parenting than they had in a few years). But as time wore on and the long cold winter happened and adrenaline gave way to cortisol, a real depression and isolation and anxiety settled around me. Already an introvert, I had my interaction levels dialed down pretty far, and when they were eliminated almost completely, the bottom started to fall out a bit. You go through the aftermath of a hurricane as part of a community -- we went through Covid isolated from our communities. I am feeling and seeing a lot of "Post Covid Stress Disorder" now, as people renegotiate their terms of engagement with their worlds.