TOUGH TIMES

Right now, we need to stay positive and remain hopefully for our futures. It seems impossible right now to see the positive in this situation when everyone is stuck in their house with very little to do. Change can be painful. However, change is inevitable, and we just have to learn how to deal with it. COVID 19 has taken the world by storm and life has come to a pause. Many of us have faced new challenges, lost love ones, lost our jobs... Times are tough right now, there is no doubt about it. However, there is this strong feeling of connection knowing everyone is going through the same thing. Yes, undoubtedly everyone's experience will be different, but we are all facing the same problem.  

We need to remain strong and not give up. This will come to an end eventually. Strength grows in the moment where we think about giving up, but we keep going. It might seem like life will never go back to normal, but we must be strong right now; things will get better.  

We cannot become what we want if we remain who we are. We are the only one standing in our way. Use COVID as an opportunity to better yourself. Push yourself. Set Goals. Take up a new hobby. This current situation is giving us the opportunity to re-evaluate what we want from life.  

Personally, I have found the whole COVID situation difficult. Working from the house is very unmotivating due to lack of interaction with other students. Furthermore, I find the lack of interaction affects my understanding of my course.  Although, working from home is hard, it must be done if I want my degree at the end of the day.  

However, I have used this time to connect with my past hobbies and set goals for myself. Throughout lockdown I set myself fitness goals for example to run a 5K in 25 minutes. Might not seem like an important goal, but it gave me something to do. It also improved my fitness greatly; I can now run further than I've ever been able to run in my life. I also started to draw and paint again. I. found myself bored one night and decided to order a cheap set of paints off Amazon. Lockdown gave me the time and opportunity to do stuff I forgot I loved. I now use both of these to relax after a day of university. I start the majority of my mornings in the gym. It gives me the opportunity to get out the house and release some stress for a couple of hours. I also find painting very therapeutic therefore I use paint to wind down after a long day.  

Right now, more than ever, we can't give up on our dreams/future. Time are gloomy but it will change. We can't control the current situation, but we do have control over our own futures and attitudes towards it. Be positive, be productive and remain motivated. We will get there... 

Stay safe and healthy! 

- Lauren xxx