By now we
have all heard enough about the coronavirus/COVID-19 to last us a
lifetime. I for one am limiting the
amount of radio, internet and TV time to keep the hype and noise to a
minimum. Given the speed of changes and misinformation it
is easy to be whipsawed between what to do and not do to stay safe.
Take face
masks for instance. When I was
recovering from chemo and the transplant, I was told I had to wear them to
protect myself when my immune system was compromised. Now I hear the ones I was given to wear are
useless to prevent infection from a virus but useful for protecting others from
getting what you have. Great, months of
thinking I was protecting myself when really I was saving others from getting sick
from me. Guess it worked, no one around me got
Leukemia.
But more
seriously, what is the story with the irrational panic buying? People are doing hand to hand combat in
stores over hand sanitizer while right next to the empty spots on store shelves
are plenty of soap, bottled bleach, and spray bottles of Lysol. Tito’s Vodka had to issue a press release
telling people not to make hand sanitizer out of their vodka (not enough alcohol
content). They suggested using it to
pass the time while quarantined. And
don’t even get me started about the rush on toilet paper. Toilet Paper? What are people doing as a result of the
virus that requires pallets of TP? Maybe
making home grown face masks.
You have to
admit if it wasn’t so serious it would actually be humorous. The best comedians are the politicians. In Philly this week the local politicians declared
the St. Patrick’s Day parade would go on as planned but in the same newscast they
warned people not to attend. Then of
course there is president Trump’s expert medical assessment that it “will go
away”, “One day, it’s like a miracle it will disappear.”. This followed
shortly after by bans on incoming flights, cancellations of large public
gatherings and a stock market crash.
Speaking of
cancellations, for only the second time in 124 years, the Boston Marathon is
being postponed till September (first time was in 1918 during WW I). Disappointing
I’m sure for all the runners that put in the training through the winter and
now have to face staying in shape for 5 more months. For me it is actually helpful. I’ve
been fighting a bad cold for the last 10 days and as the case with immune system,
when I get sick a number of the inflictions from the chemo and transplant come
back to haunt me. As a result, I had to
curtail my training for a bit. The extra
time and the summer months will make for much more pleasant training as I try
to make the marathon challenge. It will
also hopefully take us past the significant part of the COVID-19 outbreak. As someone who falls in the high-risk
category (over 60 and compromised immune system) and currently fighting a bad
cold, I can use all the breaks I can get.
In the near-term Pam and I are just hunkering down.
Hunkering
down reminds me of the months I spent in the hospital going through
treatment. As we all go into some form
isolation over the next few months it’s good to keep in mind that this is a small
taste of what many pediatric cancer patients face for months and sometimes
years. Their world isolated to one room,
maybe even to a bed waiting for the next treatment. It’s
the reason Help in the Nick of Time programs focus on helping with the pain,
fear and boredom that often accompanies protracted cancer treatment. For
those that support us I can’t thank you enough.
Till next
time, stay safe.
