Day 11 welcomes a distinct feeling of anxiety towards finally leaving. Tuesday is the final day, and it is just barely over the horizon.

I think that there is some level of importance in quarantine, beyond the goal of limiting the spread of the virus. There is something spiritual about it, a source of self-discovery and introspective thought that many never have the opportunity for.

Being alone, there is nothing else to do but find an understanding within yourself; you are constantly having conversations with your inner thoughts on a variety of things. You quickly learn that you’ll need to love yourself to make it through, giving different insight into the type of person you are.

We tend to surround ourselves and use people that make us feel good, confirming our self-perception. We have this constructed view of “who we are,” and we think that we have a good grasp on this. The truth is that we don’t.

There are many times where we fail to focus on ourselves, considering this thought to be innately selfish. Without self-realization, we fail to study ourselves and become comfortable with who you are.

Isolation has forced this upon me. You obviously aren’t interacting with as many people as you normally would; there is no opportunity to hide behind that veil of reassurance. There are times where you need to be challenged to have any chance of growth.

If you can’t be comfortable with yourself when alone, how would you ever become truly confident in yourself? In an age of social media and high connectivity, I think that upcoming generations have lost this ability to be alone. Though there are many reasons that cause self-conscious thoughts, I feel that not being able to be alone causes this.

We are so bombarded by the thoughts, looks, and actions of other people that we fail to develop that self-perception; being in lockdown is the perfect example of this on a smaller level. Going forward, I know that I am going to set aside moments alone, so I don’t lose sight of this.