Coronavirus In Italy: What It’s Like Living In Lockdown

It was 2am last Sunday morning when the Government announced it was imposing a lockdown in Italy to contain coronavirus. It’s tragic to see my dear home as one of the worst hit countries in the world. I live in Milan and we’ve been told not to leave the house until 4 April, except for urgent trips for groceries or to a pharmacy, in a bid to contain this deadly pandemic.

We've had 27,980 cases and 2,158 deaths in Italy so far, so it’s hard not to worry. A shock therapy tactic has been used to get people to stay indoors and, although I understand why the Government needs to do this, I’m very concerned. The gravity of the situation weighs on me. The hospitals are at their limit and about to collapse; our elderly are dying and my 12-year-old son is stuck in Switzerland over a hundred miles away from me.

He is at his grandmother’s house and surrounded by family so I’m not worried for his health, but I miss him and hate the uncertainty around the situation. Crucially, though, we need to protect the vulnerable in Italy: I can’t stop thinking about those who are dying, their families and the doctors and nurses who are working flat out. They are under incredible strain.

I’m trying to stay calm while I self- isolate: I’m working from home, tidying, cooking, watching a bit of Netflix and trying to carry on. My husband is with me and we have enough food to last us over a week. After that, he will pop to the shop for more and come straight home. My anxiety is overriding any desire I have to go outside; I don’t want to leave the house. It’s been over a week now and it’s hard to get a sense of what is going on outside. The occasional person is still walking past my window and construction work is carrying on in my building, but then my friends and I are all confined to our homes, WhatsApping stories of Netflix binges and sad tales of businesses we know that may not survive this.

I feel awful asking our regular delivery man, who I usually welcome inside, to leave deliveries outside the front door and, although I’m used to working from home, it feels different working under lockdown. My productivity has been affected; I’m more easily distracted.

Italy has a very large, ageing population and the elderly are the backbone to our society. I’m afraid of what this crisis will do to the country. Not only is it tragic for the people who are losing loved ones, I wonder how we will function when it comes to work in years to come. Italy is a place where a lot of workers rely heavily on their parents for childcare: when we do finally go back to work, it’s going to be tough for families, for women, for parents, if the people who looked after our children have been hit hard by this.

The other worry is the enormous economic disaster that is looming as so many businesses are hit, and what that will do to the country. I work in fashion, and already in northern Italy luxury brands are not doing business and brands are taking massive losses. It makes me really worried this will lead to another recession and mass unemployment because we’re already in a weak situation economically.

I’ve just emerged from a month of fashion shows: in February, Milan Fashion Week felt like the beginning of this strange voyage into unknown territory. Giorgio Armani held his show behind closed doors and streamed the event from an empty showroom. Pharmacies started selling out of masks and hand sanitiser and supermarket shelves emptied as people started to stockpile.

Next came a trip to Paris for the final week of fashion shows. I was surprised to find it largely business as usual, but I watched the news every day from my hotel room and saw how it was unfolding back home. By the time I’d flown back to Milan a few days later, our Government was telling people to keep their distance from each other. They had closed schools and it was clear we needed draconian measures to get things under control.

That’s why I’m relieved we’ve been told to self-isolate. The next three weeks are going to be difficult but I’m thankful my family is safe. Now, we need to come together and adopt a war-time mentality: keep calm, be sensible and think of the country so we have a chance of gaining control. Here’s hoping self-isolation slows the pandemic and death rates start to drop so we can show the world there is a way to beat this deadly virus. At heart I’m an optimist so I’m hopeful.

READ MORE: Coronavirus And Social-Distancing: What Should You Be Doing To Minimise Social Contact?

Coronavirus 2020