{"id":4382,"date":"2020-04-03T09:00:15","date_gmt":"2020-04-03T08:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/imohub.org.uk\/?p=4382"},"modified":"2023-02-14T12:46:25","modified_gmt":"2023-02-14T12:46:25","slug":"how-coronavirus-has-impacted-me-as-a-care-leaver-and-advice-for-others","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk\/imo\/career-experiences\/how-coronavirus-has-impacted-me-as-a-care-leaver-and-advice-for-others\/","title":{"rendered":"How coronavirus has impacted me as a care leaver, and advice for others"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This blog was written by Casey, a 20-year-old care experienced advocate. You can follow her on Twitter<\/a>, and read more from her on her website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My Twitter feed seems to be bombarded with questions such as \u201cwhat can we do to help care leavers?\u201d, \u201cwhat struggles are care leavers facing?\u201d, \u201cwho is not being heard?\u201d \u2013 and unfortunately, people who are completely missing the mark. We are grossly underrepresented in this pained pandemic. So, how is coronavirus really impacting me?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social isolation: living alone is a huge issue<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Being locked inside certainly isn\u2019t easy for anyone. It\u2019s a drag. I live by myself and, not only that, but I also have a health condition that puts me in that dreaded \u201cat-risk\u201d category. This health condition hasn\u2019t even been diagnosed yet. It is still being investigated by baffled doctors all-around \u2013 or it was until everything became essential only. I now sit in a state of no medical surveillance with a health problem that could be deadly but also might not be. This puts me in a situation where doctors do not have time to investigate or even check up on me. It also puts me in a situation where I do not get the treatment of someone who has a condition that could get me killed. It is an unfortunate no man\u2019s land, population: me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Living alone means there is no one to care for me if I do get sick. Hell, I even had surgery just six weeks ago and I was just as alone then as I am now. I have been suspicious that I have already contracted the virus with only light symptoms. Phew, right? I\u2019m in the clear\u2026 surely? Until I started experiencing problems with my breathing. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I\u2019m not gasping for breath with the slightest of movement. Instead, I can\u2019t walk too far without feeling like I have just run a marathon. I was walking back from the shops earlier with some heavy shopping bags. What was supposed to be a short five-minute walk home was extended to double that with a strong feeling that I was going to faint. Of course, I am keeping an eye on my symptoms, I know that because, I am not breathless when stationary, I am not dying \u2013 yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that begs the question, what if I do die? My symptoms could dramatically worsen overnight or my potential cardiovascular problems could strike. There is no one here to look after me or to find me in said deathly state. Living alone is a huge issue. I have no one to help me with shopping or isolating. No one to help me with my loneliness. And that\u2019s it, that is the big issue: I am alone. Most of us care leavers are. I know one person, she is the last one left in her uni halls. Not even a wink of staff or one other care leaver abandoned like she. Everyone else has family or at least someone to go home to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lack of routine impacts on mental health and wellbeing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Everyone I know who is not care experienced is currently living with someone. Whether that is their kids, their partner or their family, they have someone. I know some who have moved out from family previously but have moved back in for the duration of this. I sit here alone every night with just my laptop to keep me company. I don\u2019t even own so much as a TV. Other people are on video calls all of the time, maintaining that social contact as much as possible. Many people are reconnecting and speaking with their family members far and wide. I stare at a phone with no notifications \u2013 not to mention that this blog stirred up some issues with my biological family, adding to that lack of normal conversations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that moves me onto my next point: mental health. Chances are, you\u2019ve had one traumatic encounter at a minimum. A common reality for care experienced people is that we live with all of these mental health issues; depression, anxiety, PTSD, attachment disorders\u2026 you name it. Day to day life is hard enough but when you\u2019re completely isolated from all that keeps things normal? Ka-boom. Our not-so-friendly-friend depression is the only one who has come to visit. Too many of us are struggling with traumas resurfacing due to the emptiness of our brains. It has to be filled with something. We may not consciously realise this is going on but, on the surface at least, depression and anxiety begin to rise. Lack of routine starts to send us crazy. I have been close to falling back into old negative habits just to fill the time..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tips for coping<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I could go on and on about the woes of being a care leaver in a pandemic. The obstacles are endless. It is imperative that we know this is not the end of the world. So, I have compiled a list of tips on what I have been doing to keep myself sane. These can be useful to anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n