March 27, 2021

On March 25th, 2020, El Paso county released the first Stay at Home order. This shutdown non-essential business and schools in EPISD were closed until further notice. At the time I didn’t think that Covid-19 was going to be as bad as it ended up being.  

 I didn’t think that over 500,000 people would pass away in the US alone. I was told that it wouldn’t affect teenagers as bad as it would affect people that were older in age. I heard from different people that it was basically like the flu and that it should be over with soon and everything would be back to normal. I made the big mistake of listening to what everyone was telling me. Due to what I heard from my peers I didn’t take the pandemic as serious as I should’ve. I wouldn’t wear my mask around people unless I was out in public and I wouldn’t social distance in a serious manner. 

Some of my friends’ family members even got sick but I still didn’t take it seriously and me and my friends would still joke around about Covid. We would say things like “Oh no! Don’t give me Covid” Jokingly. I wasn’t scared of the virus because people would tell me that even if I were to contract Covid I wouldn’t feel it that much. My dad would try to tell me how I need to take this virus serious because even if I didn’t feel it, I could still spread it. I didn’t believe it all until I contracted Covid-19. 

Fast forward to May 10th, 2021,I started to not feel good one day and was coughing a lot so I decided to get tested and I was notified that I had tested positive for Covid. My whole mindset on Covid was changed when I started to feel the symptoms of the virus. When I would cough it felt like I was being punched in the lungs over and over again. My throat was sore from all of the coughing. I could barely breath when I would put a mask on to move around the house. Walking 30 feet to go to the restroom was a big task because I would be gasping for air by the time I made it. I had no energy when I would wake up and I was scared to even leave my room because I didn’t want anyone to deal with what I was feeling. 

Contracting Covid was one of the most painful experiences I’ve experienced, and I don’t believe any of the rumors about it not being bad that I had heard when the outbreak first started. The vaccines are coming around so the virus may start to decline shortly. I recommend to stay social distancing and to get vaccinated as soon as possible. According to the CDC, the vaccine is critical in stopping the Covid-19 virus.