I think one of the biggest issues surrounding COVID-19 is making sure you do your part to keep everyone around you safe, while maintaining your own mental health. Millennials think that since the death rate for our age group is one of lowest, we are immune. However, we are the greatest risk to the community as we are silent carriers. It’s important that we participate in social distancing and quarantining ourselves in order to protect the elderly and immunocompromised in our society. More than anything this is a team effort, this isn’t like a war where you pick sides or defend your nationality or identity. The coronavirus is a threat to all races, ages, genders, socioeconomic status, and education levels. We need to work as a team to protect everyone around us. Another piece of advice I have is to stay educated but make sure you’re getting your knowledge from reliable sources. There are a lot of people on social media and news sources trying to give their opinion and knowledge, however, much of it doesn’t come from trusted or well-researched sources, therefore making it not reliable. The influx of media can cause a large toll on your mental health and while it’s important to stay informed, it’s important to stay up-to-date with reliable content. It’s also important to distance yourself physically but not socially, FaceTime your friends or call people you haven’t talked to in a while. We are all going through the same things and being cooped up in your house alone can take a large toll on your mental health. Stay as connected as possible to your friends and family so you do get a social outlet and don’t isolate yourself completely.

Alisha Khanna is student at the University of Colorado Boulder and a member of Young Invincibles’ Young Advocates Program.