Community Chat

[Pearlee]

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@CalminHeart wrote:

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@SaggingGal wrote:
 Do you find you are getting lax about Covid protocol?Would you mask up inside for two weeks to be safe?

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I admit, I am beyond disgusted with people who don't wear masks or socially distance or get the vaccine. They are why the pandemic is worse in the U.S. than elsewhere. 

I would have asked them if they wanted masks. I keep some disposable ones handy. Too bad if they don't like it.

I find it selfish & immoral for someone to ignore science. It's not all about the individual and what they want/don't want. What they do or don't do affects everyone they are around.

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@CalminHeart. Although I recently got my first shot, I was very reluctant to do so and do not fault people who choose not to get it. It is very new and was rushed and received emergency approval.  It is IMO valid to choose not to get it until more is known about it There are people who have died right after getting it, reason enough to decline it until more is known about it. 

[suzyQ3]

For those of us who have taken this pandemic very seriously, it might be a bit difficult to let go. I am now immune but still finding myself sometimes taking precautions that are really not warranted anymore.

I'm sure I'm not alone; it, too, shall pass.

[spiderw]

I would guess many are struggling with fatigue from the stress of the pandemic.  It hasn't been easy to say the least and while some may doubt the worth of the vaccine, I am relieved to have my two doses.  I know many people who have had vaccines and all have been fine, maybe just some fatigue but that is it.  I'm not saying symptoms don'e result but in my circle of family and friends we haven't experienced any.  

I will continue to wear my mask when out and we still have to in stores for which I am glad.  For the states that opened up and no mask wearing required, I question their logic but do know the motives.  

It is tiresome and stressful but for me I continue to follow the experts and do whatever it takes to be safe.

[ECBG]

I am so sorry.  It is highly likely if the woman works in a hospital, she got the shot being an "essential worker".  

I would call your family doctor if you have questions.

Your fever was your body building antibodies against the virus according to the nurses I know.

[hckynut]

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@SaggingGal wrote:
We are at high risk for Covid because of our age. We live in a resort area that has been mostly shut down for the winter. We have stayed in our home except for essential errands since March 2020. Only one to two errands at the most per week to lessen exposure. We wear nitrile gloves and double mask outside of the home esp. grocery shopping and getting gas.

I grocery shop at early bird hours usually 6:30 to 7:00 a.m. We take off our clothes on the screened in porch and shower ASAP when entering the home after any errand and launder our clothes after a 24 hour wait. Nothing enters the home after an errand but a dash into the shower being sure not to touch anything on the way to the bathroom.

All pulls and light switches and faucets and door handles are washed several times a day. We typically talk with a delivery driver or neighbor through the front window.

We both got vaccinated this past week. My husband was fine but I am having a bad reaction unlike the first shot a month ago. I only had a sore arm then. I got a fever within 24 hours and have the chills and nausea, an expected reaction for some but dreadful nevertheless. Sleep has been the best medicine.

Today a couple my husband worked with before retirement showed up on the front deck to say Hi. They are vacationing here since it is warming up. Neither had a mask on. They crowded close to my unmasked husband all standing outside the front door.

I saw no one had a mask on so I handed one quickly to my husband. They stood maybe 3 feet apart reminiscing and walking around the property that abuts a nature conservancy. In essence my husband gave them a tour standing right next to them for about a half hour.
I am both frightened and angry he forgot social distancing protocol as if everything is normal again. The visitors are both a good fifteen years younger and made no effort to mask or stand back. The male visitor had Covid in Sept. and his wife works in a hospital, both perfect candidates for Covid carriers.

Despite my best efforts to stay away from others I am a victim of his poor judgment and their lack of respect for us as a higher risk age bracket. He was simply too close to them for too long. He said he did not want to bother them to ask them to wear a mask. Putting us both at risk I am furious with him. I am still going through my harsh reaction to the vaccine.

My husband's dear friend is a retired M.D. and even he stays masked and six feet away from others at all times. So now I worry if we will get Covid as I recuperate from the vaccine yesterday. I even had my husband wash our dogs since both visitors petted them for half the visit. Of course my husband let them out despite my efforts to keep them inside.

Transmission of Covid to humans via pets is real and has been documented. So I live in fear of Covid now for us. Staying away from each other while quarantining is not easy. Do you find you are getting lax about Covid protocol?Would you mask up inside for two weeks to be safe?

@SaggingGal 

One someone does something I don't like, in my home, or on my property? Friend/relative/service man?  I do just like i say here often. Speak up to them and no beating around b**h, in terms they understand.

I type long posts, but very few complaining about others. Like I told my co-workers. You got a problem? Why are you telling me, tell someone that can do something about it.

You are way more worried than I am, or have ever been, about what others do. In your home you can control it. Elsewhere? You are on your own.

I separated your long sentences. Made it much easier for my old eyes to read.

hckynut(john)

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[DiAnne]

@suzyQ3 

I intend to keep taking precautions after my second shot.  I feel it would be foolish to do otherwise.  That added to the fact that no one knows how long the shots last so I am right there with you!

[Diamonds22]

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@teganslaw wrote:

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@just bee wrote:

I'm a psychiatric nurse and, frankly, I'm more concerned about what this is doing to our minds rather than the actual virus itself.

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I'm not a nurse, but I agree with this statement. The mindset of some can be just as bad as the virus itself. 

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I agree with this 1,000%.

[just bee]

On my local news website this morning:

Doctors hope to study long term mental health effects of COVID-19

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — It’s been 12 months since the pandemic drastically changed New Mexicans’ lives.

Over the course of the year, New Mexico’s doctors have seen a spike in the number of patients struggling with their mental health.

"2020 has been a very difficult year unlike any other year in the last 100 years in every single way—not only physical health and the economy, but mental health in a very dramatic way,” said Dr. Mauricio Tohen, chairman of  UNM Hospital Psychiatry.

According to UNM’s Office of the Medical Investigator, there were 491 suicides in 2020. Early numbers from the state reveal a nearly 4% decrease in the number of suicides that year. Despite a decrease in suicides, Tohen said he has seen an increase in mental health issues and people using drugs.

"We always talk about the pandemic in terms of mortality from a respiratory infectious point of view, but there is also a mental component,” he said.

In December, the state released a 41-page report that looked at the pandemic’s impact on mental health. According to the study, calls for help have increased. The New Mexico Crisis Hotline saw a 20% jump in calls in 2020, and a 24% increase just among veterans.

For the second year in a row, 36 kids between the ages of 10 and 19 died by suicide, according to the Office of the Medical Investigator. The data also showed that 27 kids between the ages of 11 and 17 died by suicide in 2020. Meanwhile, 104 New Mexicans 65 years or older died by suicide, according to the data from OMI.

"There are, of course, ideal measures in the prevention and transmission of the virus, but they do also have consequences in terms of our mental well-being,” Dr. Tohen said. “We're social animals, so we need to see each other, so the phrase ‘keep social distance but remain socially engaged’ is very important."

U.S. lawmakers have called for more money to research COVID’s impact on mental health. One proposed bill would give the National Institute on Mental Health $100 million a year for the next five years to dig deeper into the issue.

"I think the legislators who thought about that are on the right track,” Dr. Tohen said.

Dr. Tohen said he’s applying for grants to do the same things. While some physical symptoms of COVID last for a short period of time, Tohen said he’s concerned about the long term mental effects of the disease.

[KaySD]

Your safety protocols are on the more conservative side, but beyond following the basic rules, we must each assess our risks and strategies and make our own best decision. That said, I can sympathize with how discouraging it is to be ultra-careful for so long, and feel you might have blown it all in a half hour! 

I personally would not wear a mask in my own house. Much of the later research has revealed that surface transmission is less likely to occur than it was thought earlier. And I feel excessive fear has its own risks.

But that's just me. If you are more comfortable in a mask, no need to struggle over your decision, just go for it. 

[CrazyKittyLvr2]

I agree that you should ask your Dr. if you are worried.

Everyone needs to do what makes them feel safe during this.

DD and I have worn masks, social distanced when out, washed our hands and the basic things but I was not about to turn my home into a Biosafety Level 4 lab.

I did not remove my  shoes, make a made dash for the shower, sanitize my groceries etc.  And yes, I'm old with issues that would not be great if I got Covid but even I have my limits with this thing.