“Wow! This is great! I get an extra two weeks off, plus spring break!” This was Sara’s reaction in March of last year. Little did she know, the break would continue into March of this year, swallowing the rest of her sophomore and all of her junior year.

Everyone has been impacted by the lingering virus, Covid-19. This pandemic has taken a toll on students:  some lost a loved one, many have suffered from one of the many traumatizing repercussions, and everyone has felt its wrath over the last year. With the chaos 2020 has brought, people continue to battle the virus in quarantine and struggle with the thought that they are doing this all alone when, in fact, they should not have to. The clinical solution to this problem could be to provide a video enterprise space where people can cope with their feeling from a healthy distance.  To prevent any more effects from Covid being multiplied it must first be comprehended that the reason people might feel like they are suffering is owing to the fact they might have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from Covid-19.  This simple solution may be the key to helping people with PTSD from the virus and may provide comfort and support to thousands of students and adults before seeking professional help.

PTSD is defined as a physiological disorder that may result in someone who has gone through a terrific event.  According to an article by Hartford Healthcare from 2020 titled “ PTSD from COVID-19? Here Are Four Signs.” PTSD from the pandemic is depicted: “ The physical stress of infection might end, but COVID-19 patients can carry emotional scars from the experience for months and years, often in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder…” When someone is confirmed with a case of the virus, they are asked to quarantine for 14 days along with any others they may have come in contact with recently. Becoming infected with a virus that is notorious for causing 2.6 million deaths worldwide, is a dire situation. Once the patient is recovered the preceding thoughts may haunt the individual… “A fear of dying, Social isolation from, the time spent hospitalized or in quarantine, anxiety at the thought of getting sick again, guilt over infecting or harming others.”. These blood-curdling thoughts are detected in survivors who may or may not undergo them. The distressed don’t have anywhere to turn to because there is a scarce amount of help for this cause at the moment.

Survivors should have a safe space where they can talk about their experiences. Society is in dire need of cooperation that will allow people to talk about their guilt, grief, and fears to others who are also being affected. Ideally, leaders of this program should have a background in helping people with PTSD. Groups would assemble in a video communications enterprise where they could stay socially distanced from each other for safety reasons and calm the anxieties of catching the virus another time. As a result, the groups would better understand their situation and their feelings as a survivor rather than being alone in feeling like an outcast.  Right now, safe spaces like these are slowly being created. According to Sara Radin in her article “ For Coronavirus Survivors, COVID-19 Support Groups Fill a Need” A support group named Body Politic COVID-19 Support Group, helped Sara with her diagnosis in early March of last year. The group helped confirm that her strange symptoms were normal things that other patients had been experiencing. The hopes for the organization that is put forth in this essay are the same but hopefully would include multi-purpose groups since the effects of the pandemic have further worsened over the past year. Some may wonder “Why create these groups? Can’t people seek one-on-one attention from a professional?”

While the argument is valid and understandable, this is a circumstance that no one has experienced. Groups of people will be more efficient compared to an individual going to see a professional because no one knows what others have gone through rather than a group of people who have gone through it. In the Article “Are support groups a good alternative for therapy?” Nikhita Mahtani cites evidence from Kimmy Ramotar, a licensed clinical psychologist who reports, “Many people benefit from attending a support group because they tend to feel comforted by an environment where everyone shares similar struggles.” In these support groups, when the practitioner asks a question about the topic at hand, the conversation will carry on within the group of people. Sometimes it’s simply too hard to talk and it is better to listen because there might be a lesson that is learned just by listening. While therapy is still a good approach, group therapy is just a different approach to the situation. (Support Groups)

Professionals will lead the group and will be there for guidance while the members of the group reconcile their experiences and receive validation from others. Grief is one of the biggest factors society has seen since the Coronavirus hit, and a group of people all coming together may give different perspectives on the passing of loved ones. People will continue to persevere and there will be light at the end of the tunnel.

Moreover, it can be concluded that the affected are going unheard and unseen and they need to be brought out of the darkness and shine the warm light of community upon them. Support groups will help bring people together at a safe distance and help with their PTSD from Covid-19. The best idea to keep in mind right now is that the Pandemic will end eventually no matter how frustratingly vague that answer is. Better luck next year, March 2022.