I don’t know about you, but I keep feeling like Bill Murray in that movie, Groundhog Day, where my alarm keeps going off and I live the same day, every day.
As sure as the sun will rise and set, this morning and the previous 2 months of mornings, has found the media beating their fearful rhetoric about COVID-19, ad nauseam
I can’t listen to another word about it…but I can write about it! Please understand, I am not dismissing the seriousness of it. It is very, very, serious.
The drone of washing your hands hasn’t been the fervent cry anymore. Now it’s about the American public wanting to have control over their destiny again.
They can still wash their hands when that happens too! However, the pent-up anger has reached a zenith, and fortunately many cities and municipalities begin to re-open their doors.
With that easing up of the shutdown, there still is a fear that getting the economy back in good health could actually jeopardize more lives down the road if the Coronavirus comes back – and if so, research indicates that the virus could return with a vengeance.
In fact, according to CNN, while the spread of COVID-19 has slowed down in some areas of the U.S. – due in large part to social distancing – a second round of the virus may be “inevitable” in the fall (of 2020).1
According to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the virus “is so transmissible” that Americans could be in for a bad fall and winter, especially if the country is not prepared. The Mayo Clinic backs up this concern, stating that a second wave of the virus could return just in time for the start of the flu season.2
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that during the 2019-2020 season (which ran from October 1, 2019 to April 4, 2020), there were at least 39 million cases of the flu in the United States, causing more than 24,000 deaths.3
Research indicates that oftentimes, the second wave of a pandemic is worse than the first. Take, for instance, the 1918 influenza pandemic that killed in excess of 50 million people around the globe. This virus began in the U.S. with an initial mild spring wave in the United States. But there was a “lethal” second wave that hit much harder that September.4
So, what can you do to help yourself remain safe from this pandemic?
One strategy is to still maintain social distancing measures and continue to wear masks out in public. Another is to conduct as much communication as possible via phone and online chat. This includes both business and personal situations.
Oh and (again) never forget to also WASH your hands!
Now, unlike the 1918 flu outbreak – where the primary modes of communication were in-person or through written letters – there is a multitude of methods available today for spreading the word to one another, without spreading the virus.
I can’t imagine what it would be like today to only be able to write letters to communicate!
Maybe being shut down but having use of our computers, phones, TV, plus a refrigerator full of food, well, maybe that's not that bad after all! 😉
Anyway, take care of yourself and be safe!
Best to YOU always,
Artie
P.S. - If you enjoyed this blog, please share it with a friend!
P.S.P.S. - If you are concerned about your retirement because of COVID-19 and want to talk, feel free to go to my online calendar here to set up set up a time there.
Sources
1. Another wave of coronavirus will likely hit the US in the fall. Here’s why and what we can do to stop it. By Nicole Chavez, CNN. May 2, 2020.
2. https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/02/health/coronavirus-second-wave-fall-season/index.htmlPreliminary In-Season 2019-2020 Burden Estimates. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
3. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/preliminary-in-season-estimates.htmAnother wave of coronavirus will likely hit the US in the fall. Here’s why and what we can do to stop it. By Nicole Chavez, CNN. May 2, 2020.
4. https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/02/health/coronavirus-second-wave-fall-season/index.html