Space travel is essentially the same self-isolation, and the quarantine there is much stricter. What advice can those of us sitting at home give to those who have to deal professionally with all the negative consequences of being in a confined space all the time?”
In 2017, I tried to live like an astronaut. No, I wasn’t floating in weightlessness, conducting revolutionary experiments, or enjoying the view of Earth through a window. But for two days, I stayed in the apartment where I worked, exercised my muscles, and ate only freeze-dried “astronaut” products from packets. So I tried to understand what it feels like to be isolated from society 24 hours a day, without the ability to leave the premises, such as cosmonauts and astronauts on the International Space Station, or during a possible flight to Mars.
Let’s go back to the year 2020. Now millions of people on our planet are forced to live like this because we are trying to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Now we don’t have to try to imagine what it’s like to stay indoors 24/7. And as we try to adjust to the new routine, it will be interesting to see what advice we get from those who have spent months in isolation. We contacted two NASA experts. The first is Dr. Chell Lindgren, an American astronaut and physician who spent 141 days aboard the ISS in 2015 with five other crew members. The second is Jocelyn Dunn, an engineer and human performance expert who participated in a NASA experiment simulating life on Mars and lived in isolation with five other scientists for eight months in 2014-2015. Here’s what they recommend.
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On the ISS, the astronauts’ days are scheduled at five-minute intervals – experiments, station maintenance, communication with Earth, meals, simulator exercises, and so on. As Lindgren says, when you’re at home, it’s useful to engage in something meaningful, even if it’s new to you. “Being able to work from home is a real gift,” he points out. “A lot of people don’t have that opportunity. If you can find something meaningful to do, it makes the time go faster. Work makes it easier to stay on the orbital station, and six to nine months fly by unnoticed.
Lindgren, who is currently isolated at home with his family, says that at the beginning of each week he talks to his three children about what they want to achieve and makes sure they have time for it – in addition to their schoolwork. Dan suggests dividing the day into parts with transitional periods in the form of a short walk (if allowed in the city where you live – ed.) or physical exercise. During the simulation of the flight to Mars, the participants in the experiment exercised together on simulators after work and before their personal free time began. “When you work from home,” she warns, “it’s easy to get caught up in the work without a break.”
In an unpublished study, Dunn and her colleagues sought to assess how different crews spent their time and self-organized in new living conditions during 4-, 8-, and 12-month missions within the confines of 139 square meters. The results show that the majority of people spend about the same amount of time on different activities.
On the ISS, astronaut days are scheduled at five-minute intervals to help maintain a meaningful lifestyle. Participants in the experiment spent about 7-8 hours sleeping, 3-4 hours for leisure, 3-4 hours working on individual projects, one and a half hours for physical exercise, two hours for meals, and half an hour for personal hygiene (which is quite limited because they could spend only a very limited amount of time in the shower – as it might be on Mars). The rest of the time was spent working together.
Lindgren recalls how he once spent three hours repairing an exercise machine on the International Space Station (ISS). As he reassembled the machine, he realized he had put the right part in the wrong place, so he had to take it apart and reassemble it. “I was terribly angry with myself, and the guys at the control center gave me some great advice. First of all, they asked me to tell them how to write such instructions so that no one else would make my mistake again,” he said. Then they told me not to feel guilty, not to dwell on what happened because it could affect everything else I do on the ISS. That kind of attitude about what happens was very helpful for us on the space station, and I think it will be very helpful in our current situation. So if you suddenly realize you forgot to buy toilet paper or your fried eggs are burnt, don’t worry, he says.
It is important that both your crew and the people you live with understand what you expect of them, Lindgren emphasizes. And you have to talk to them about it regularly. During the Hawaiian experiment, the Dunn crew divided “domestic” responsibilities among themselves according to the schedule. They also set aside time each Sunday to discuss how the week had gone. “We took an hour to talk about the past week, what went well and what didn’t, and to look ahead to the next week and the difficulties that might await us. We felt that this hour on Sunday was the most appropriate time to share any dissatisfaction that might have accumulated over the past few days,” she points out. “The Orbital Station was not only a place of work for us, but also a home. So we had to find ways to entertain each other. However, it is very important to feel the mood of the crew. Sometimes people just need to be alone to relieve tension,” says Lindgren.
In the Russian segment of the ISS, the crew ended the workweek with a joint lunch. In the American segment, they watched a movie in the evening. “We brought small pleasures into these activities,” Lindgren recalls. “On weekends, we spent time playing games that could only be played in weightlessness. It was incredibly fun, and those are some of my fondest memories.
When you’re in space, the only way to take a walk is on a spacewalk. It’s hard to think of it as a way to relax. On Earth, the Lindgren family also tries to plan activities together, such as a weekly viewing of their favorite TV show. “Anything goes – something we look forward to and that is different from everyday work – for example, regular video calls with other relatives. Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who spent a year on the International Space Station, told a New York Times correspondent that he always tried to find time for entertainment while orbiting the Earth. For example, he watched every episode of Game of Thrones twice. For those who suddenly find themselves in a situation where they have to spend much more time than usual with the people they live with, Dann recommends not forgetting the importance of moments of solitude. “One of the most important lessons of the ‘Martian’ experiment is that when you live in an enclosed space, you need to have some time alone on a regular basis. It is perfectly normal to say that I need half an hour to be alone, to meditate or to write in a journal, or just not to talk to anyone.”
When you return to Earth from orbit, and the recovery of your ability to walk depends on physical exercise, it is easy to convince yourself of the necessity of such exercise. But even when you are simply confined to your home, it is important. “We spent two hours a day training on simulators, it was in our schedule and we were expected to do it. So there was no way to escape,” recalls Lindgren. Lindgren, who currently conducts weekly training sessions (via video communication) with a group of astronaut friends, emphasizes that there are ways to maximize the integration of exercise into the daily schedule. For example, schedule a specific time of day, set a reminder on your computer or smartphone, and make sure everything is prepared in advance – both sports equipment and clothing. “Exercise is extremely important,” he says. “Especially now, when stress is quietly building up inside us because of the current situation, they provide an opportunity for physical and psychological relief.”
During her study, Dunn tracked the stress levels of crew members during the eight months of isolation, as well as those who underwent a year of isolation “flights”. And she noticed some patterns. Each person initially experienced high biological stress (due to increased workload, emotional tension) but did not feel it – possibly due to the initial excitement of living in a dome-shaped “Martian” structure. But starting around the sixth month, both biological and perceived stress levels increased significantly. And around the same time, people started sleeping at different times to see each other less. “The larks began to wake up even earlier, while the owls went to bed even later.
Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly says it was important for him to find time for entertainment and everyday activities in space. Dann also found that the frequency of heartbeats upon awakening is a good indicator of stress levels. There are many “smart” wearable devices available to track your pulse, but Dann says you don’t need a high-tech device to wake up and feel your heart beating. If the indicators of your pulse rate gradually increase upon awakening, you need to reconsider your life strategy in stressful conditions. In the experiment in which Dann participated, it was specifically during the sixth month that people began to behave more conflictually and express their dissatisfaction. Researchers call this phenomenon the “third quarter syndrome” – people who perform tasks under difficult conditions, such as astronauts or polar explorers, experience a drop in morale. “This phenomenon can begin to manifest itself halfway through,” Dunne notes. “People begin to feel that the end is still far away, while the novelty has worn off. And you have to find either internal or external motivation to behave normally and maintain smooth relationships with those you live with.” According to her, by the third quarter of the isolation period, people start avoiding each other, which further cements their bad mood. So it might be worth keeping up your regular video calls with friends and family, even if you don’t feel like it.
Interestingly, when Dunn compared the data from her 8-month mission with the data from the crew’s 12-month mission, problems occurred after six months in both cases. An increase in the number of conflict situations was observed in both crews during the third quarter of each mission, but it was not until six months into the mission that people began to get on each other’s nerves. “At first, people try to behave the best they can, but after a few months, they start to fall back into their worst habits,” says Dunn.
Lindgren (left) says eating together on the ISS has been an important part of maintaining normal relationships among crew members. Although many of us are now trying to predict how long social distancing and self-isolation will continue, no one knows for sure when it will end. So it is impossible to say exactly when our personal dissatisfaction will erupt. “For someone, the third quarter can also be the third week of living in isolation. It all depends on our expectations. “The biggest difference between our space experience and what is happening in the world today is that we went to space by choice,” says Lindgren. “We knew what we were getting into, we had the opportunity to prepare. Unfortunately, our society found itself in the midst of the current crisis completely unprepared, so we have to learn to deal with stress on the go.” In addition, the astronauts knew exactly how long their mission would last. “When you have already gotten used to when exactly you are going to fly and when you are going to return to Earth, any changes in these dates create a psychological problem,” Lindgren points out. “I have tried not to count down the days so as not to be disappointed if something goes wrong and the schedule changes.” Lindgren advises to prepare yourself psychologically for a long life in isolation – then any relaxation of restrictions will be a pleasant surprise. “It’s easier than waiting for everything to end quickly.” “Our earthly mission revolves around caring for the health and safety of our loved ones and society as a whole,” Lindgren emphasizes. “When you stand up to fight a crisis together, rather than individually or against others, the results are impressive.” According to him, this means that we need to set our priorities correctly, be ready to solve tasks as if we were in space – regularly engage in physical exercise, sleep well, eat properly. All this will help both the people with whom we share our home and society as a whole. “This will pay off a hundredfold – if we face the crisis as a united group, not as divided individuals. Within our family, we are all members of a team, but we are also members of larger crews – our neighborhood, our country, and our planet.” “If you take the last two rolls of toilet paper at the grocery store and see someone searching the shelves for at least one, give it to them,” says Lindgren. “Such small acts of love for others play an important role.
You can read the original version of this article on the BBC Future website.