Unlock Life’s Answers
Through Deeper
Questions

In early May 2026, news broke about the Andes virus cases aboard a cruise ship. Though the WHO assessed the global risk and stated that it was low yet, it stirred a sense of unease in a lot of people. Not quite panic, but a reminder of a time when uncertainty became the norm.

The last time the world shut down in early 2020 over a virus, we were completely unprepared. Not just medically, but in a personal, deeper way too. We were caught in a mix of feelings: anxious about the circumstance, grieving the losses around us, and fearing what comes next. Everything came to a standstill at a time when we were racing at top speed. Our trust, patience, and social connections were all tested.

Research published in Frontiers in Psychology found that fear during COVID-19 was both useful and harmful. While it helped us plan and follow safety guidance, it also led to panic buying and mental health collapse. The enemy was not the fear itself but the information, or rather, that we weren’t able to read the information rationally. But we learned to navigate that. 

The version of us that faced the pandemic then learned from it. We worked through the anxiety, and we adapted to the new reality.  

The first pandemic changed us in a lot of ways. We now understand that endless doomscrolling puts a heavy price on our emotions and mental well-being. We have learned that panic spreads faster than facts and that when fear is left unmanaged, we might shrink our lives much faster than a virus ever can. 

We also learned something gentler about ourselves. We learned that humans adapt.

People found new ways to celebrate through screens. Friends checked in on each other more intentionally. Families rediscovered conversations. Many began questioning the speed of modern life altogether. During lockdowns, there was a strange global pause where people started asking deeper questions about meaning, work, rest, and connection.

In some ways, the uncertainty that caused the stress and anxiety is what made people more human.

In case there is another pandemic, our collective response would likely be less dramatic and more emotionally informed. Not because we would care less, but because our experience has helped change the shape of our fear. We have already lived through the shock of not knowing what tomorrow looks like.

We are now equipped with better tools. Apart from apps like Calm and Headspace, which have become more clinically grounded, and more transparent information from authority agencies like the WHO and CDC, we also carry the knowledge, patience, and experience from the previous pandemic. 

The question then is not "What would I do in another pandemic?” but “How would it be different this time?”

Maybe instead of spending hours trapped in endless scrolls, we could choose to return to a slower pace, adapt sooner to grounding routines and habits, and become more intentional with our connections and relationships. We could talk out loud about our fears. We could indulge in simple yet fulfilling experiences, like cooking without multitasking or watching the sky from a balcony.

The pandemic taught many of us one thing: resilience does not mean pretending everything is fine, but rather learning how to be emotionally and mentally open even while everything seems uncertain. It is about discovering that strength sometimes looks like adaptability, patience, and softness rather than control.

If another pandemic occurred, it would still be difficult. People would still worry and fear. There would still be grief, anxiety, confusion, and disruption. But maybe this time, humanity would remember something important much earlier: that survival is not only physical but also emotional.

It is the ability to stay connected without drowning in fear. The ability to remain informed without becoming consumed. The ability to accept uncertainty without surrendering entirely to it.