Introverts joke that this pandemic is the best thing to happen to them, while extroverts feel completely disgusted with the amount of time they have to be isolated from friends and excitement. And for those who fall in between these two extremes, it’s been okay and some days and terrible on others. So while the feeling of missing socialization may not directly relate to everyone, for a vast majority who fall into the latter, two groups social distancing has been hard. So here’s how to stay social during social distancing. 

1. Just like some classes are using Zoom for school, virtual hangouts like these can be a great way to get your friends together to just chat. 
2. Many people have a workout buddy, but just because the gyms are closed doesn’t mean you have to forget about them. Set up times to do workouts, whether you facetime or skype while you do it, its up to you. 
3. If you find yourself doing an activity that is truly exciting you, share it with your friends. Same goes for reading material. 
4. Daydream about your next trip with them! While it’s unknown when vacation travel will be allowed, it doesn’t mean you can’t still plan or fantasize. 
5. While some health specialists may frown on this, if you wash your hands you should be fine. Write an old fashioned letter to a friend.  Not often do we find ourselves writing letters for anything but thank you letters to grandparents so it could be a fun new way of engaging with your peers. 
6. Weekly lunches! If you’re like most high school teenagers then you are quite used to having lunch with each other most, if not all days. So during this time it could be entertaining to schedule a time each week to video chat during lunch. 
7. Share music playlists. Showing others what kind of music you’re into and see what others are liking. It can be amusing to see what people are filling their time listening to. 
8. While games like Call of Duty may not be everyone’s cup of tea, getting onto Minecraft and creating elaborate buildings, mining through caves, and warding off monsters all while enjoying each other’s company via video gaming. 
9. Take before and after pictures of a project: spring cleaning, a painting, purging event. By sharing your accomplishments and viewing others, the sense of unity will return! 
10. If you find yourself missing your work friends and bosses because you don’t fall under “essential work” then you can make a group chat and share little occurrences of your daily life in quarantine. 

There are many more things you can do to stay close to your friends that seem so far away, but here are just a few.  For more ideas visit this website.