Table 1 Place: themes and sample quotes

1.1 Adjusting to emptiness and stillness

The most striking thing about these walks, apart from the beauty of the view, was the lack of airplanes in the sky. Our airport is usually very busy and although it was nice to feel so calm, no aircraft made everything seem eerie, a bit like an apocalypse movie. (Switzerland)

“What’s happening?”, “Where are all the patients?”, “How does it come to be so?”, “Why does the hospital look like a ghost town?”—many questions emerged. However, there was only one answer fitting all these concerns: the reason is COVID-19, the consequence is doctors without patients. (Vietnam)

1.2 Shifting timeframes

I had seldom, if ever, felt so disconnected and disoriented—not only from important people in my life but also from the rhythms that had been familiar and recognizable to me as my life. (USA)

1.3 Blending of spaces: inside and out, personal and professional

Our provincial government had ordered all public parks, playgrounds, and trails closed. Officials had taped off entrances to facilities, basketball hoops and, in this case, an urban playground…I was focused on the abundance of tape, and the rattling metaphor that it conveyed about what this pandemic would mean to the concepts of childhood, parenting, and fun. (Canada)

Maybe it was OK to show that I was in my apartment, that behind me was my messy and unruly kitchen. I don't know. I felt maybe too exposed…I saw this kind of tension between being open, accepting to share a little bit more than usual with my patients, while keeping a sense of privacy. (France)