by A big feeling that most of us have experienced in light of COVID-19 is the feeling of powerlessness. For many students, college has been a time of total freedom. You did whatever you wanted, wherever and whenever you wanted, with whoever you wanted. You woke up every day and decided whether to go to class or skip, what restaurant to grab dinner from and if you wanted to study or hang out with friends. Having the ability to make so many choices reminded you that you were in charge of your life.
Now, you sit at home all day and think of all the things you wish you could be doing. It might feel like you have no choices—but that’s not true. Here’s how you can take your power back.
Recognize the choices you have.
No one made you sit at home all day during the coronavirus. You had a lot of choices. You have the choice to be in a room full of people right now. You have the choice to travel during this time. You have the choice to stand closer than six feet to people you don’t live with.
But instead, you CHOSE to sit at home. It was not your only option. You had LIMITLESS OPTIONS. So why did you choose to stay home?
Recognize that all choices have results or “consequences”.
You chose to social distance and flatten the curve because all choices have results. Whether you realize it or not, you thought through the consequences of your actions and decided that staying home was a GOOD option. Maybe not a great one—you have to sacrifice a lot of fun, normal things to stay at home. But to you, it was (potentially) the only good option.
Recognize that within your choice to stay home, you have other choices.
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
-Viktor E. Frankl
So, you decided to do what the U.S. Government and TJC have recommended: you decided to stay home. Does that strip you of your power to make other choices? No way. You get to decide how you spend the hours of your day even in these moments. Not sure that you agree with me? Make a list of your choices.
- I can choose to go for a run or a walk
- I can choose to study or fail my classes
- I can choose to watch Tiger King or Cheer
- I can choose to feel powerful in my choices, or I can give away my power to my circumstances.
Recognize that even inside pain, you can choose your response.
Viktor E. Frankl, a survivor of the Holocaust who spent time in concentration camps wrote, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
You can choose to feel proud of the decision you have made to stay home, social distance, and flatten the curve, even while recognizing that this situation is not ideal. Choose your attitude. Take your power back.
