BROOMFIELD, Colo. (KDVR) — In Colorado, about 11% of COVID-19 cases are in people ages 10 to 19. Now, a 16-year-old from Broomfield, Colorado is hoping to help teens with COVID-19 feel more connected.
Marlo Weber created a support group called “Teens with Covid” online and through social media apps. The junior from Legacy High School tested positive for COVID on Oct. 26, and she isolated in a room in her house for ten days.
“It was pretty lonely being in that room alone for ten days, and it was really monotonous. The whole thing felt like one long day,” she said.
Weber feels much better now, and she realized it would have been nice to be able to share her experience with other sick teens while she was in isolation.
“I could maybe ask if they had experienced that loss of taste and smell, see when they got their senses back, and just have someone who knew what I was going through,” she said.
So, on Saturday, Weber launched the support group “Teens with Covid.” The website, Teenswithcovid.com, will have information. The Facebook group, she says, is geared toward parents. The Instagram page is where teens can share what they are going through.
“We’re making posts about things you can do to stay busy in isolation. We’re going to do TV show recommendations, movie recommendations,” she said.
Weber says she had lots of friends and family who video chatted with her and helped her get through her isolation. She wants others to feel the same support.
“I wanted to create a resource so that every teen that is in isolation can have those same connections and not feel as lonely,” she said.