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Portfolio: Free Writing

Sophie Joan Smith

California State University, Fullerton

English 363: Scientific Writing

Dr. Leslie Bruce

December 9, 2020
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Pre-Writing Strategies (Week 11) October 17, 2020

Free-Write on Covid-19 and Mental Health:

5 minutes free write unedited:

Covid-19 has been detrimental to mental health when you talk to friends and family. No matter if

they are higher risk and therefore scared of actually getting physically sick, the one thing

everyone seems to have in common is that the isolation has been really hard on people’s minds

and spirits. I have noticed friends who didn’t have problems with depression and anxiety develop

depression and anxiety slowly over the course of the year. I have also noticed an increase in

alcohol consumption over the course of the pandemic. That is, I have noticed some people who

may have been only social drinkers before Covid-19, are now drinking alcohol every night to

cope with the stress of the uncertainty. Also, being “stuck” in our homes and unable to

participate in social activities was particularly devastating to college students. Not being able to

go to class on campus has affected my own moral and spirit. My graduate school plans have been

placed on hold because of the disruptions caused by Covid-19 and that has caused me a great

deal of depression and anxiety. I did notice though that some individuals seem to be coping

better than others and that makes me wonder if there are certain protective factors like resilience

and adaptability which might benefit individuals and keep their mental health from declining as

quickly or severely as others might. I have also noticed that my own grandmother, who survived

WW2 as a Jew, seems to have low levels of anxiety related to Covid-19 which makes me wonder

if older people are more resilient than younger people.

 Individuals who may not have had depression or anxiety at the onset of the Covid-19

pandemic, may now be experiencing symptoms of mental health problems for the
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first time. The slow burn of the pandemic has made it difficult for even the most

“balanced” individual to stay positive throughout the course of events that have

occurred since March 2020. If even individuals who had no pre-existing mental

health problems are now experiencing them, it is not difficult to imagine how

individuals who were already predisposed to difficulties with anxiety and depression

could be really struggling now. It would be interesting to look at how people with no

predispositions to anxiety and depression are faring versus how people with

predispositions are faring at this point in the pandemic. It would also be interesting to

look at protective factors; That is, why are some individuals coping “better” than

others?

o Reflection: This exercise was useful because it helped direct my thoughts. In

the beginning I had no idea what was going to come to me or what direction I

wanted my research for the annotated bibliography to go in, but this

freewriting process helped by “hone in” my thoughts so I don’t feel as

overwhelmed at this point. I am someone who likes rules and structure, so this

type of exercise is particularly useful to help my brain be more flexible.

Turning the Free Write into a Rough Plan (Crossing out Irrelevant Ideas and Drafting a Rough

Thesis with Bulleted Ideas):

 There is a relationship between the circumstances during the Covid-19 pandemic and

mental health effects.

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o Mental health effects appear to be affecting the majority of individuals during

the Covid-19 era.

 (Use research on broad samples cross-culture, age, and sex.)

o Individuals who had no pre-existing mental health problems may now be

experiencing them for the first time.

 Is there evidence for this type of concept?

o Individuals may be consuming more alcohol to cope with stress related to

Covid-19.

 Has substance use increased?

o Are college students being particularly affected by the circumstances?

o Are there any protective factors?

 Are people who are more resilient better equipped?

 Reflection: This exercise was useful as an extension of the last because it allowed me

to literally organize my thoughts and prioritize what was important to me and what

could be omitted. I certainly see how this type of rough planning will be useful for me

in the future as I continue writing for science. I will employ pre-writing strategies

before formally writing research papers. Sometimes concepts seem so broad that I

procrastinate even starting the research, but doing organized exercises like this allow

for a certain type of direction that I find very soothing. (If only there was a way to

implement “rough plans” into my daily thoughts!)