Anonymous Story: My Coronavirus experience 

When the Coronavirus "lockdown" was so suddenly put in place, and all public venues had to close down so quickly, it must have been a huge shock to each and every person.

I felt suddenly and totally cut off - having spent the past few years re-introducing myself to social situations with the help of Mosaic Clubhouse, its staff and evening clubs - trying to relax but yet stretch my "social muscles" ever further, and feeling proud of myself that I was learning healthier ways of being alive and functioning with the very relaxing and helpful Friday evening Yoga session.

It has been a very steep learning curve - having dodged computers and updated technology for years - that I've had to accept that with the harsh rules in force at the moment, there is no other way around keeping in touch with others, than to find a way to learn the Zoom videochat thing - however it did take me few days to get the right mindset and enlist the kind practical help of my Engagement  Worker. This enabled me to be ready and able to communicate with my granddaughters.

The totally cut off feeling was soon alleviated when Mosaic texted me info on how to keep Mosaic connections going and reassuring us all the weekly In the Mo mag could be contributed to and emailed out online.

I also very much appreciated the Mosaic Easter bank holiday Zoom sessions, which were enjoyable and gave me more practice in Zoom, not my forte at all, but necessary and heartening in this time of social distancing.

Last, but not least, I just wanted to say how much the link provided of the SLaM free online course re. Coping with Coronavirus was so very timely, and helpful for myself and family members. 

The past three or so weeks have been very overwhelming for everyone in different ways, real shock to our systems, but everyone has tried to create new ways of connecting with others, of keeping in touch regularly, and in as familiar a way as possible - I now feel some sort of reliable routine of connection has been created, and don't feel as alone and freaked out as beforehand.

Many thanks to Mosaic Clubhouse staff and members and everyone else who has done their best to enable activities and communications to continue, albeit in different forms for the time being.