Lena gets back from her night out. She greets her sleeping mother and heads to her own room. She gets ready for bed. Lena starts sneezing.

Lena: (wipes her nose) Urgh, damn allergies.

She sneezes again.

Lena: (sarcastically) Or Covid.

Lena closes her eyes and tries to sleep. She struggles to sleep, and tosses, and changes position. She eventually sits up and gives a silent scream, then she lies back down and forces herself to sleep. She’s interrupted by her phone vibrating. She checks her phone.

Lena: (annoyed) Of course I’m wide awake now. Why can’t I sleep? It feels like there are ants crawling all over my body.

Lena watches TikToks. A video plays and a voice can be heard saying: “Hi friends. OK, so story time. As you all know, I had Covid and that’s why I disappeared for a bit. I’m finally ready to share a little bit about my Covid experience, and how awful it was, from the weakness to the lack of oxygen. Little disclaimer, this is based on my personal experience. I’m a healthy 26-year-old. You all know I’m a professional swimmer, and I’m vegetarian and gluten free. So, in my eyes I’m relatively healthy. Plus, I don’t like germs, so you know that I’m super strict about the Covid precautions I take. But Covid still managed to kick my ass. There was one point where I was on high-flow oxygen. That’s how bad my breathing got. I was lying in a hospital bed, on high-flow oxygen, with not a single loved one around me. I felt alone.”

Lena tosses and turns throughout the night.

Tell us: Do you find yourself scrolling through social media when you can’t sleep? Does it ever help, or does it keep you awake longer?