lucia, 25

How are you?

I’m…existing! I’d say overall I’m doing ok but I definitely experience a rollercoaster of emotions throughout each day that ranges from sadness and stress to relief and happiness (reading the news vs facetiming with my friends)

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omg me too! i sometimes feel like i’m losing my mind. and i feel like i’m forgetting how to talk to people haha

Right! I really need to limit my news and social media intake or it feels like too much! But it’s a double edged sword because as much as I want to limit social media, I want to stay connected to everyone I love!

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Where are you staying at?

I’m in Forest Park (right outside Chicago) and I’m with my dad and stepmom. I’m in a two flat with them so I have my own apartment but still interact with them, which is nice because if I was fully living alone I think I would fully lose my mind right now!

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What does your daily routine look like in quarantine?

It’ll probably change once I’m off spring break and have more of a schedule, but right now the thing I do every single day without fail when I wake up is breathing exercises and meditation. Then usually some version of scrolling through my phone and panicking, eating, going for walks, facetiming, watching movies, reading, meditating in the afternoon, doing yoga and then watching Netflix until my eyes burn off and I lose all sense of reality.

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What has been helpful to lower your stress level during quarantine?

I meditate everyday, and if I didn’t do that I don’t think I would be able to function right now. Also going out for walks and exercise in general has helped me get out of my head. Playing my guitar definitely helps. I’ve noticed that facetiming my boyfriend and really anyone instantly reduces my anxiety. But if I’m being real, I’ve fully sold my soul to Arrested Development and am currently binging every season because it’s the funniest thing in existence and I forget everything when I’m laughing that hard.

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What do you miss the most? (Or what’s the first thing you want to do when this ends?)

I miss performing stand up comedy so badly – I miss being on stage and all of my comedy friends and basing my entire sense of self-worth on the validation of an audience of complete strangers (wait..). I miss not being scared when I go to the grocery store! And I miss HUGS! When this is done I’m going to hug EVERYONE until the NEXT quarantine is announced because everyone went outside and hugged!

Photo: “This is my new weighted blanket and its gender is male”