Obviously quite a lot of people who use this forum have been told to stay indoors for the next 12 weeks. What I would like to know is what is likely to happen next, a further 12 weeks and a further 12 weeks after that until a vaccine is found ? To me that is unsustainable and likely to cause massive mental health problems including suicides in some cases. As I see it at the moment the public are keeping their part of the bargain by generally staying inside etc and social distancing but the government are not keeping to their part particularly as regards testing and most experts say that is the only way out of this problem.
How would members on here react to being told you can't leave the house for possibly the next year and can't have any contact with your familes except via comms devices.
I hope I'm being over dramatic but I see it as a real possibility.
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RJJ2
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Hi RJJ2. That is the million dollar question which I suppose nobody can answer at the moment. This virus is a day to day thing which everybody seems to be in the dark about. Whether it be just over the 12 weeks it will have to be a sacrifice we have to make. I do not want to think beyond that as I believe it will start to be detrimentral to our mental health and will start to impact on our lives in a bigger way than it already as. Hopefully we will get through this but I fear that things will never be be the same again. Warm wishes and stay safe.tina.x🤗
We are being asked to stay at home to reduce the risk of needing hopitalisation and possibly dying from the virus. This action not to bait for a vaccine (although that would be great) it is needed to allow the doctors and nurses to do their jobs as well as they can, with the limited knowledge they have of the virus, it’s treatments and the vast number of people needing hospital and intensive care and bed shortages. Not everyone is in isolation many people still have to go about their business to keep the country supplied with essentials. Not to mention the stupid idiots who don’t think it will make a difference and go out and socialise anyway. These are the people who are going to be using up all the hospital beds at the moment. All I can say is that if I am considered more at risk of needing to be put on a ventilator I’d rather wait until there are more of them available and a greater nurse/patient ratio of medical staff to look after me. How ever long that takes.
You are right about these idiots who think it is alright to go out in their gatherings, these people have the attitude it won't happen to me! Well these people should stop for just one moment today and pause and think about their extended family. Most of them still have their parents and grandparents with them. How will they fare if they catch it? These are the questions that they need to ask themselves. Warm wishes & stay safe.
As Tico said, an just taking this day to day, week to week, otherwise it could become an overwhelming thing, cause mental health deterioration.
It is possible it will go on longer, however, the infection rate will slow. The measures are not so much in place because they want to 'save' our lives, but more to give the NHS the best chance at being able to cope. Once this initial period is over, there will be less infected people, less people in intensive care, there will be loads of ventilators available and more will be known about it and treating it.
So my view is, whilst the situation is changing daily, I'll focus on the day ahead, a day at a time 😊
Very well put, at the moment that is all we can do. Today will be the telling point with the weather predicted to be the hottest in the last six months. I fear if some of these 'covidiots' start to come out in force,than stricter lockdown rules will come into play therefore making it harder for our friends & family to leave essentials at our door. Warm wishes & stay safe.tina.x🤗
Staying at home or self isolation is important at this critical period, as the spreading is still quite bad, we all doing our share for the community and trying to flatten the curve, very important to help less spreading.
We are being told that when the infection rate doubles every 14 days then they will lift some restrictions. In Germany it’s currently 9.5. l guess the aim is to achieve gradual herd immunity among the young in a way that Health services can cope and also to look at treatment options that may ease the symptoms. Those who have immunity could return to work once anti body tests start
The isolation is to allow the hospitals to prepare & to have a more gradual admittance rate. Its not easy to find vaccines, tests etc... Part of the issue of testing is a lack of chemicals as every country is after the whole thing. Trials are under way but it takes time which is why they are looking at drugs that have been approved for use in other areas as these have been through all the testing processes which take years & billions to achieve.
There is long standing evidence published that shows that in a massive crisis mental health improves rather than reduces as everyone else is in the same situation and so how an individual is feeling, what they are going through becomes less focused because of this. Many people are having contact with their friends & family in ways they never have done before which will reduce the loneliness, because everyone has time to contact each other. Part of the roles the Government has set up for the amazing volunteers is to phone people who are alone at present, so that they have contact with people. The first few weeks will be tough but as it becomes more the norm people adjust & everyone is pretty much in the same boat, most people I know, even with no health issues, are isolating quite a lot.
All we can do is follow the guidance & remain in contact with everyone & not think too far ahead. Stay safe x
My husband suffers with depression and anxiety and since this Coronavirus has started he is definitely mentally happier. I know this won’t necessarily be the case for every who suffers depression.
He is so focused on dealing with what’s happening day to day that he hasn’t even given the future a thought which is what his worries all seem to be about.
He is working from home and it is proving to be more productive not just for him but the company he runs too, he is in such a happy place right now that he is even thinking of a career change (when this is over) which would have been completely out of the question a few months ago. He is loving being at home, spending more time with our son and hopefully me too!!
This unfortunate event is having a positive effect on him and I’m hopeful that we can carry on this positivity when things return to some sort of normality. However we have both agreed that our normal before this virus will be different to the normal afterwards.
As I said I know that our situation won’t be the same for everybody but there are definitely positive stories out there amongst all the doom and gloom.
I'm not certain how you consider testing to be the way forward. The only people requiring testing are those NHS workers in direct contact and others at the front line. They would be tested to ensure they are not going to pass on the virus.
It is not known whether or not this virus can repeat in the same individuals. so what would you gain by knowing if you're infected?
We're self-isolating to help others and ourselves. We're all in the same situation. Yes, it's not the easiest time but we're all affected and we should all be pulling together to get this under control.
Sorry, I could go on but I will not because it's just getting me too angry. We ALL need to get over ourselves and get on with dealing with this situation as directed. It's the best we've got at present. Make the most of it! You're still alive and receiving whatever medication you require for your immediate condition.
We have got to follow government and medical advice. Otherwise this will last a lot longer. We all need to stay safe and carry on!
I think that testing for the virus is useful where containment is possible ie South Korea Singapore managed this well
But in Europe and the US antibody testing is seen as more important because society needs to function it cannot go into lockdown for a year or two. At least these people can then return to work. True the immunity may only last a year or two but hopefully we will have a vaccine by then
Anti body testing will also improve our knowledge of the virus it’s spread in the population and mortality rates
Actually scientists virologists and health professionals are all emphasizing the importance of testing especially for anti body
I hope you and the rest of our community are doing ok.
I started to write directly to you and my reply developed somewhat into an essay. I apologise for going on a bit but it is intended for all of us as much as it is directly to your good self.
It is likely that the advice from your Government and medical teams may shift as time passed, to among other things take into consideration people's mental health as things go on longer and longer.
We all should ensure that we, with the help of family/friends make sure we do all that we should to ensure our physical health. In some ways this is perhaps more straight forward to do, for the majority of us.
What each of us do to ensure our continued positive mental health can be a bit different as there is not a simple formula for this. Another way of looking at this, in a positive way is that we can create a plan that is absolutely suited to our own very individual needs.
These are not normal times and it is very normal to feel worried, scared or confused. If these feelings continue or take over all of your time please do phone you GPs or other specialists. There are many fantastic phone/text support agencies that can be contacted in order to connect. The Samarithans are one such organisation.
One of the benefits of the internet is that it is a fantastic resource for positive and realistic information and ideas (and we all know there is plenty of nonsense on the internet to be avoided at all costs).
Most positive mental health plans may well include reminders and ways to look after health eating, sleeping, exercise, contact with helpful family/friends and to not forget what works for you in a spiritual sphere, be it formal prayer or burning sage while chanting.
Lots of people are finding different ways of doing things in our current reality, some of which may seem silly at first.
A few things that I am doing at the moment that I have found are helping me mentally are:
- I get up in the morning even if I don't feel like it and wear clothes including shoes, rather than PJs.
- I cook/prepare every meal. I haven't cooked as much since I first discovered my MPN in 2016 as I have in the last 3 weeks and I'm trying out some new variations with my menus.
- I have figured out the quietest times of the day where I live and step out for air and some exercise then, thus avoiding coming into contact with anyone.
- I get the news morning and evening online (less dramatic than the TV) and leave it at that. I deliberately watch something positive, funny, silly etc. each day.
- I call family/friends each day to see how they are doing/coping and not to necessarily tell them how I am doing. I focus on looking out for others.
- My family have done some video (Zoom) calls, which we never did before. - Two weekends ago we had a party with some drinks, food, chat and a few of us wore silly hats/wigs etc. We had people from Australia, London and accross Ireland at that party, which lasted a few hours.
- Yesterday the same crowd met up by video online for my nephew's first birthday. It was wonderful.
As I said different people will find what works for them.
One final thought, we as a community with a variety of chronic conditions I think also have an advantage on the general population, while not forgetting our obvious vulnerabilities.
We are used to getting life altering news, we are used to integrating it into our lives. We already have proven our Resilience. We know we can cope, we already have.
Best wishes to you all, stay safe, healthy and positive.
Thank you Pat. I feel better having read your post, particularly the final paragraph about our resilience, which is so true for us all. Best wishes to you, yours and everyone in this community.
I've been diagnosed with ET with MF since last February 2019,but I shut myself down to reconnecting with this community soon after I joined, as I found it too painful to want to discuss my conditions and the potential future impact on my 2 little girls. Covid 19 has opened the sores again, can't bury my head any more.... and I'm glad I have such kind and positive people here to share with. Thank you.
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