Believe it or not, it's been almost eight months since most US states and many countries around the world issued stay-at-home orders because of COVID-19...and suffice it to say, this year has been a very long decade.
Also feeling the stress of lockdown is actor and comedian Kumail Nanjiani, who has been quarantining with his wife, writer Emily V. Gordon. She is also at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19.
In a series of tweets on Sunday morning, Kumail laid out how he and a lot of people are feeling eight months into the pandemic.
I’m sorry. I’m generally a very optimistic person & have fought to keep positive these last few months. But today is hard. We are heading into a massive Covid spike & the people who are supposed to protect us are doing nothing & blaming us for being concerned.
We’ve been in quarantine for 8 months because my wife is in a high risk group. We feel let down by our country. But it’s not about us. We’re the lucky ones. Over 226,000 people have died. That’s so many families destroyed. People have lost their homes, their jobs.
Experts are worried that with children back in school and people spending less time outside, there may be a significant spike in cases in the fall.
He criticized the current administration for how it has handled the virus but also spoke about the hopelessness he feels when things like wearing a mask are projected to be a sign of weakness.
Wearing masks is a sign of weakness. Protecting your friends, family, neighbors is a sign of weakness. Getting your heart broken every day by rising cases is a sign of weakness. Worrying that the next text will contain unthinkable news is a sign of weakness.
The CDC has stated that masks should be worn to help prevent the spread of the virus.
“I feel like I work really hard to keep all these doors closed in my mind, to try and keep all these scary/sad/devastating thoughts out of my head. Focus on the positive. Donate to worthy causes. People are doing fantastic work out there. Most days it works. But not today."
"I guess I have nothing constructive to say. Just be careful out there. I’m afraid we have a couple of bad months ahead of us. And I feel hopeless and helpless today. Actually, please respond with worthy organizations we can donate to. I’m gonna try and crawl back to optimism now."
Some celebs echoed Kumail's statement, like Sara Bareilles and Rachel Dratch.
Thread https://t.co/qmH54JLZoN
@kumailn Well put. Feeling the same
Fans also tweeted their agreement and appreciated his honesty.
All my feelings of frustration and despair, captured in a single thread. https://t.co/RqdUqYPedp
Feeling every bit of this. https://t.co/zQy5cK2e7z
No matter how you feel about it in a political context, there's no denying that the pandemic has made this year very, very difficult for a lot of people.
Kumail's words are also a helpful reminder that, despite so much being out of our control, we can control our own actions like wearing a mask and socially distancing. These in turn can help a lot of people not get sick.
And it's perfectly normal to feel overwhelmed and tired at this point! While we will eventually come out on the other side of this, the current state of the world is enough to take a toll on anyone's mental health.
