But three weeks into the restrictions, Syrians are venturing out again, opening shops and returning to work to put food on the table for their families.
She told The New Arab's Arabic-language service that her shop, which sells cosmetics and accessories, "is the only source of my family's livelihood".
"My three children are reliant on it after my husband's work stopped in Lebanon and he was no longer able to send us money. I opened the store after I saw many shops open their doors," she added.
"People cannot live without work, and we barely save enough for our daily expenses since prices have gone up significantly."
Ruwaida's situation is echoed in many households across the city.
The anxiety is palpable amongst shopowners, who nervously watch the street's main crossing.
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He told The New Arab: "We stopped working for 15 days, and thank God we did not show any symptoms. We have a lot of needs at home."
"I heard that many countries have given their citizens aid, but here no one asked us about our situation or how we can go about getting bread."
The regime shut markets, schools and universities on 15 March as part of sweeping measures to control the spread of coronavirus. It has extended these restrictions until 16 April.
Read more: 'Our fear is doubled': Exhausted by war, Syrians struggle to cope with coronavirus pandemic
Movement between governorates, and between rural and urban centres, has also been blocked, causing many Syrians to lose work.
Syria was among the last countries in Asia to officially register any cases of Covid-19, arousing suspicion that there had been a government cover-up, especially due to the number of Iranian fighters, which has been especially hard-hit by the virus, coming into Syria.
Nine years of gruelling civil war has eroded healthcare facilities in both regime and opposition-held areas, meaning the country is considered at very high risk of a large-scale outbreak.
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