Member-only story
Introverts Were Supposed To Thrive Under Lockdown. Why Didn’t I?
Some of us weren’t born for this
In the early days of lockdown, I thought society had readjusted itself to align with my innate capabilities and desires — a time of solitude spent creating.
For a few days, life had proceeded according to my predictions. But as the days passed, my super-productivity transitioned to something resembling sloth.
What happened?
The hype infected me. I read too many stories about how we were suited for quarantine. The lockdown was supposed to be a liberation for us. We huddled in virtual spaces, preparing to coddle the poor extroverts destined to suffer.
For the first three weeks of lockdown, I worked more hours but produced far less output than before this maelstrom swept in and turned our homes into prisons; the reasons why are now clear.
We don’t have a choice
It’s one thing to choose solitude, but it’s different when someone or something restricts your freedom. That’s a distinction you rarely hear about because it hadn’t been relevant until COVID-19 upended our lives.
Remember when you were a teenager, and your parents forbade you from dating that troubled boy or girl? That restriction on…
