‘I felt like trash’: How COVID-19 has affected body image in young people

At the beginning of 2020, Afrah Howlader made a personal goal to exercise regularly. Howlader, a 21-year-old senior studying public health at Drexel University, went to the gym often during January and February. The results were encouraging — her stamina increased and she could feel herself getting stronger. Then, in March, COVID-19 closed her gym. “This was the only time in my life that I went to the gym regularly,” Howlader said. “I spent all this time building up a good habit, so it was definitely disheartening to lose it.”  To read the full story.