Four years ago, the world went into lockdown as cases of a novel virus named SARS-CoV-2 began to climb. In the early days, this meant people barely left their homes as cities and states implemented stay-at-home orders and social distancing measures which inevitably placed limits on peoples’ social lives.
Instead of gathering in person after work, we turned to Zoom happy hours. Universities across the country went from teaching in classrooms to offering full-time curriculums online. Traveling to see long-distance families was no longer a safe option leaving many to go without a hug or seeing a familiar face for years. While this process saved many lives, it did come as a cost for many people's mental health: it worsened their feelings of loneliness.
