As COVID-19 cases rose in the Philippines in March 2020, the government declared a state of calamity nationwide and implemented the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) over Luzon which was most affected. The ECQ imposed measures that restricted the mobility of citizens and disrupted their usual routines, in addition to various directives for the public to protect themselves against COVID-19. As the pandemic and the measures to contain it were all novel, this cross-sectional survey looked into the Filipinos’ reactions towards the pandemic, their compliance to directives on how to protect themselves, and their coping mechanisms to maintain physical, mental, and emotional health during the lockdown. Results showed that Filipinos have a high level of concern over the pandemic, and expressed fear for their health and that of others. They also most often to always adhered to practices protecting them against COVID-19, and performed activities that maintained their physical, mental, and emotional health during the lockdown. Some responses were affected by the respondents’ regional location, age, sex, and civil and employment status.
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