Epic Rant
3/10/19
Now we have one more item for our stress list: Covid 19. More than all the crazy behavior of those supposedly in charge over the last few years their behavior around the behavior around this pandemic makes me the craziest.
I won’t bore you with the facts of the illness—these have been published ad infinitum and I trust that if you’re reading this blog, you have some familiarity with Covid 19. If not, here’s a great piece on the pathogen and it’s behavior and the science behind the whole thing. I also trust you know to wash your hands, and I MEAN WASH your hands—early and often. I can’t believe how many people I see in the locker room of my gym who ignore this directive and I MEAN IGNORE. So much for the universal body.
If I hear/read one more person say or write that Covid 19 is essentially the flu or is no worse than the flu I’m going to scream. First: Covid 19 IS NOT THE FLU (influenza—which comes in many flavors). It’s no more the flu than it is polio, cancer, diabetes, measles, mumps, scarlet fever, or cholera. From what I can tell, the logic these people are using is that there is no difference between one pathogen and another or one illness or another so let’s ignore any diseases that step into our lives because it’s easier and cheaper than dealing with them. (Which is no logic at all, I know) The implication here is that the pandemic is “overblown”. Let’s see how people feel about this in a few weeks when they wander into an emergency room to have their kid’s broken arm set and they are faced with a mob of sick people, air chock-full of pathogens, and no available health care worker to attend to them.
The other argument I hear is, “Well, it’s just old people and those with pre-existing conditions who are at risk.” Where do I start? In a world in which people age, I am at a loss as to what to say about the former. As to the latter? First, there are many people who fall into this “pre-existing or chronic conditions” category—more than most of us care to count. We are a culture that has institutionalized unhealthy lifestyles and one in which business interests profit off of these “pre-existing conditions.” It is the ultimate cruelty to now just leave these persons to fend for themselves. Cruel, but not surprising in today’s climate.
Then there are the numbers of people who love to say there are only X number of confirmed cases or X number of deaths from Covid 19 so you’re over-reacting. Well, human history with pathogens speaks to the folly of this line of reasoning. And, it is becoming very clear that no-one has any real idea how many cases of Covid 19 exist in the U.S. However, tt’s a safe bet to say the number is not fewer than we think. I would like to point out to these numbers people, that the death RATE from Covid 19 is substantially higher than that for their beloved flu.
I could go on and on—and I have over the last week. But enough about that. Now, I’m been puzzling over how to be constructive amidst this very stressful situation. I’ve decided that first and foremost, it’s important for all of us to do our very best to stay healthy on all levels. Here are a few suggestions in that direction:
- Follow all the hand washing, coughing, and social separation suggestions issued by the WHO. For all our high-tech advancements, washing our hands and covering our coughs (Michelle Obama style-with our arm) are really great approaches to slowing down this pathogen.
- Be thoughtful about attending gatherings, getting on a plane, or getting on a floating petrie dish. Give some thought to where you are going. Can this be postponed? Am I helping or hindering the situation? And if you have cold-like symptoms, stay at home (which is something you should be doing anyhow!)
- Do what you can to boost your immune system. Eat a healthy diet: high in vegetables and fruits. If you’re feeling a little drawn out, elderberry extract or sour cherry juice are both great immune system boosters. Neither taste too good on their own so try dropping the elderberry extract into a few ounces of water and mixing the cherry juice with a sweeter juice.