COVID-19 Collection The Day the World Shut Down First-person stories from the pandemic years—preserving not only what happened, but what it felt like to live through a defining global moment. March 2020 changed the world almost overnight. Streets emptied. Borders closed. Schools, workplaces, businesses, and family routines were disrupted by uncertainty unlike anything most people…
Amanda describes the closeness her family found during lockdown alongside the strain of shielding, disrupted medical care, home-schooling, and the constant work of protecting a medically vulnerable family member. Editorial Status: Source Unverified This account is published from the original archived submission. The source contains conflicting references to family relationships and pronouns. Those inconsistencies have…
Michelle, a college student in Canada, describes losing her job during the pandemic, returning home to her parents, reconnecting with her Punjabi and Indian heritage, and discovering new interests during lockdown. Editorial Status: Partially Verified Archive This account is published from the original archived post attributed to Michelle. Passages that substantially overlapped with other posts…
Anna describes how lockdown pushed her family into financial crisis, contributed to her father’s struggle with anxiety and depression, and separated her from her mother after a COVID-19 diagnosis. Editorial Status: Partially Verified Archive The opening portion of this archived post appears distinct to Anna’s account. Later passages substantially overlap with other posts in the…
Diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis shortly before COVID-19 reached the United States, Sophia entered the pandemic already isolated and immunosuppressed. Her account explores illness, job loss, grief, mental health, and the courage to keep choosing connection. This is Sophia Morris. I would like to share something from this very difficult time. We all know that there…
Sapna, an English honors student living away from her hometown, describes the sudden return home during lockdown and the mix of silence, fear, family time, boredom, study, and self-discovery that followed. Editorial Status: Source Partially Unverified This account is published from the original archived post attributed to Sapna. Several passages also appear in other posts…
When Zimbabwe entered lockdown in March 2020, Grace’s family lost the ability to earn a living almost overnight. Her firsthand account reveals how COVID-19 restrictions pushed one family from hardship into desperation—and the impossible choices that followed. It was the 30th of March 2020. The president of Zimbabwe had just announced that, for the next…
Craig reflects on the rapid changes of the pandemic, the strain of staying home, and the family support that helped him remain patient, positive, and resourceful. Original question: Please share any and all ways the lockdown has affected you and those around you emotionally, physically, mentally, or situationally. So much change in such a short…
During the first months of COVID-19, Shan’s family navigated uncertainty, health fears, interrupted routines, and difficult choices about how to stay connected without putting loved ones at risk. Original question: Please share any and all ways the lockdown has affected you and those around you emotionally, physically, mentally, or situationally. I’m feeling sort of stuck…
As COVID-19 spread across Asia, Christine Troyano chose to remain in Bali, where she was teaching online and watching lockdown reshape the lives of students, workers, travelers, and communities around her. Her account also traces the idea that became Truly Raw Stories. Welcome to Truly Raw Stories. My name is Christine Troyano. Although I am…