When Tuesday morning began, we were prepared to go to practice and class later in the day. By the time the sun set, we became barred from leaving our secure locations in hopes to trap a threat that cannot be seen.

My name is Tyler Wells, and I am writing from the confines of my house off-campus where I have been restricted to my room in fear of possibly spreading the COVID-19 virus. This will be a journal chronicling these 14 days, hoping to give a glimpse into what life is and will be like over the next two weeks.

The notification of the mandatory quarantine was sent, for me, at 1:22 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, just after I returned from class. As the afternoon went on, worry about potential exposure grew; who has symptoms? Who has been exposed? Who is positive?

At around 7 p.m., I realized that I had been directly exposed, for great amounts of time, to two individuals who were exhibiting symptoms. In order to protect my housemates, I made the decision to lock myself down in my room. During this, I began to show symptoms: a cough, sore throat, congestion.

There is an innate loneliness about it, feeling locked down and unable to follow the natural routine. All I could do was sit in my bed, eat food that my housemates prepared and left outside my door for me, and watch the New York Yankees’ playoff game. Later in the night, my symptoms worsened to include nausea, dizziness, and heavy fatigue. Going to sleep was scary since, even though the odds are in a young adult’s favor, you never know what is going to happen.

For now, everything is on a “wait to see” basis. All I can do is stay barricaded off, drink plenty of water and keep my sanity while tucked away in this 14-day quarantine.