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Morgan Goff
College is a onetime experience in life and now that is being limited to the students around the world. Covid-19 is a virus that is spreading throughout the globe. The effects of this virus have caused businesses to shut down completely and put the entire world in quarantine. Furthermore, this causes a lot of limitations within the area of Pikeville, such as going out with family and other activities. College is the hardest part for first year students because of how hard the transitioning is from high school. The biggest part of college is your social interaction and building your character as others see you but due to the global pandemic; students must follow the guidelines for our safety. Masks are used to protect the user from receiving the virus, CDC has confirmed that masks are by far the most public powerful tool they have against the virus. This causes a lot of problems with students around the globe trying to find a way to fit in at the college, masks prevent us from showing our identity to other students and make it very tough to meet and greet new people and possibly our new friends.
Social Interaction is a very useful factor in our mental health. Depression, stress and loneliness can be treated by family members and friends. Surrounded by the people you love can reduce the amount of stress one is inflicted with and give them a positive state of mind. People must be social blue to form bonds and connections high releases chemical compounds giving you feelings and emotion. The importance of social interaction is to create and make bonds that will last a lifetime. College students will struggle making friends by following the mask guidelines, preventing us from seeing who we are as people. Communication is a huge factor in social interaction by using speech, gestures, and facial expressions. Masks save us and each other from this virus but it kills our opportunity to truly experience college to the full potential and prevent us from forming a friend group. The only example I have is from my own experience, wearing a mask every day on campus is very hard to interact with other students and create bonds with one another. Facial expressions are used in interacting with one another and with the masks we cannot tell if someone is happy or depressed, another real-life example was me trying to have a conversation and smile to the person I’m interacting with and it just destroys the mood. Students around the globe understand that college is the chance to start fresh and make new friends but it’s difficult following the guidelines and a lot are dealing with depression and loneliness.
Quarantine has caused students to have increase in depression by not socially interacting with other students on campus. WKTV has interviewed students and asking them how they feel about quarantine and students have said it feels like prison. The University of Pikeville did very well with handling the pandemic and gave first year students a great welco