Editor’s note: This story is part of the annual Mosaic Journalism Workshop for Bay Area high school students, a two-week intensive course at journalism. Students in this year’s virtual program report and photograph real stories under the guidance of professional journalists.
Since the quarantine started, 16-year-old Sophia of San Jose has been spending a lot of time shut in her room. Sometimes she gets anxiety attacks. Sophia has been struggling with her mental health since she was in middle school, but especially in quarantine where she has no one to talk to.
Along with Sophia, the coronavirus epidemic has taken its toll on many other young people.
In a recent national survey by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, more than half the students who responded said they have needed mental health support since school closures. Some 20% of the students said they had been getting support before quarantine but now it’s difficult to reach these resources. An additional 32% said they had not seen a counselor previously but feel they need one now.
These students said the pandemic has dealt them difficulties that bring stress for various reasons. Many teenagers fear that their parents can catch COVID-19, or they’re afraid to go outside and risk getting infected themselves. Others worry that they will not be able to return to their school campus in the fall. Some are cornered in family situations that are toxic and at the same time, they can’t get help because they are quarantined.
“The amount of time that my family is spending together is making us more susceptible to fighting and we have no way to spend time apart so it turns into a cycle of me getting yelled at,” wrote one student in the ACLU survey, which was distributed in the last week of April through social media. More than 650 students from 49 school districts in California responded.
Eileen Donovan, a counselor at Downtown College Preparatory El Primero High School in San Jose, has seen firsthand how students have been impacted by Covid-19.
After the shelter-in-place, Donovan said she noticed many DCP students were feeling more isolated because they couldn’t go to school or to work.
They “were feeling more anxious because their normal routine was changing,” said Donovan.
She also saw that some had family issues, so being at home all the time wasn’t a good idea. A lot of students’ grades started to drop because they felt that they couldn’t do their schoolwork in an online learning environment.
Seniors felt they were missing the transition from high school to college. They couldn’t attend prom and graduation, and they felt lost that they weren’t able to experience these memorable events.
For Sophia, being in the house overwhelms her because she doesn’t have much in common with her family. So she shuts herself in her room. She likes to visit her friends and talk about any updates in their lives. But she does not have many chances to do this, so she stays at home and overthinks specific scenarios.
“When you’re isolated from people all you have is yourself and your thoughts, so I’m just stuck in my room thinking about a lot of things. Being quarantined really took a toll on my mental health,” said Sophia.
To protect her privacy, Mosaic is not using Sophia’s real name.
Aaliyah Kelley, a 17-year-old from Campbell, felt the loss of getting her senior year plans cancelled and the stresses of being an essential worker.
Aaliyah works part-time at Walgreens in Gilroy as a cashier and stocker. She has had to follow the rules on limiting grocery purchases of hard-to-get items. Customers would be rude to Aaliyah, forcing her to call the manager to clear it up.
She said she has had to hold in her stresses. She finds it difficult to talk to her friends because she hasn’t been able to see them and doesn’t like talking over text.
“I pull my hair when I’m stressed out. I did see myself pulling my hair more,” said Aaliyah.
She has found ways to adapt, though. She plays with her cat Milo. They cuddle and watch TikToks together. To relieve stress, she has also started running through her mom’s neighborhood in Campbell.
Donovan, the counselor at DCP El Primero, is helping students adapt as well. Donovan calls families to see how they are doing and if they need help.
She has given students contact information for food banks, phone numbers for mental health resources like therapists, and information on getting financial help. She has also held virtual meetings that help students adjust to online learning.
Mayline Ruiz is a rising junior at Downtown College Prep El Primero in San Jose.