“ . . . and how we are eager to move on, except for all those who cannot.”
I’m a retired ICU RN. I retired at the start of Covid. I lost many colleagues who died due to their exposure to Covid and the lack of adequate PPE. And the frontline workers who worked through it are suffering from burnout and PTSD.
I too am a nurse. I was working as an outpatient neuromuscular nurse. I retired after 41 years in Nov of 2022, well into covid. Ours was a different kind of isolation, No longer able to depend on the truth or adequate protection from administration, no longer able to sit with peers for lunch, makeshift rooms to try and maintain distance between workers and many new plexiglass barriers. Always the expectation to work overtime most weeks because so many peers were out with covid, and so many more calls from patients and their families because someone had covid or they needed to talk because someone had just died from covid and they were not allowed to be in the hospital room, The struggle to not become numb, to not have empathy burn out. Then coming home to the covid station where uniforms were taken off for the laundry, alcohol wipes and segregation of all other items, the immediate shower often complete with tears to try and regroup to do it all over again. Standing as witness to the horrible hurt and fear of a populace who was deceived and betrayed by their President and so many ignorant people claiming denials so they could profit from what ever flimflam product they were selling. This often resulted in anger that at times was taken out on us, In all my years this was the first time I had been sworn at and even spit at just because I would have to ask patients, on a daily basis, to please pull up their mask. We learned that we need a President who believes in science and good public health policy. We needed a leader and what we got an idiot pushing ivermectin, bleach, light , and who depended on the advise of a deranged MD who thinks women get endometriosis from sleeping with demons, Covid hit the US really hard because we were slow to know the truth and isolate , also because we are so ill mainly because of the standard American diet, Too many people died because they have been lied to for the past 5 decades about what the body needs to eat and be exposed to for health, and because we had an incompetent President, Obesity which is inflammation of adipose tissue which is an endocrine gland and part of the metabolic syndrome picture including insulin resistance, and hypertension all of which are reversible made us much more susceptible to covid. There have been many many studies now showing that an organic whole food plant based diet can reverse many instances of heart disease, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. We have learned that we have as many cells ( friendly bacteria, viral, fungal archaea) living in a symbiotic relationship with as we have human cells.. If we feed them what they need, they help support the very homeostasis and health of our bodies, And yet, this vital information is not revealed to the public or known by most doctors. or the mainstream media, There are many metadata analysis on the NIH website so the government does know. No one wants to push against Big Ag, Big Pharma, Big chemical , Big health insurance, Big Healthcare, Big oil.. I hope one of the lessons our children come away with is that all Life is interconnected and interdependent. If we are to sustain, to persevere, then we must protect the life in soil, water, and air so it can support our health. We learned the importance of diversity in our microbiome as well as on our planet and how encroaching on animal habitats through farming of monocrops and factory farming of livestock is making everyone sicker. Everyone now ingests approx. a credit card worth of plastic every week. Healthcare is broken. Dr’s are taught very little about nutrition, the very thing that we humans are designed to need for health, I hope to see this vital information taught to doctors so we can help people stay healthy instead of just pushing pills for symptoms. The covid pandemic is awful on so many levels but I hope we don’t just move on and miss the silver lining. Science has learned so much in a short amount of time. I hope the public demands to know these findings and will want to read every article that has the word covid in it. If not, how many have died in vain?
All of this, Linda. Our healthcare system is indeed broken. I started nursing in a faith based hospital, later bought out by a for-profit corporation. They expected us to care for 2-3 intubated patients, we had no breaks - unless we ate during our time in front of the computer screen. “We all have to do more with less”, they said. Elliot has written an excellent piece, but for those of us on the frontline and saw what we saw, we will never forget Covid.
I am a retired psychiatric RN, I had to retire early. I planned to work to at least 70 however due to the COVID, my unit was a unit that had most.y certified patients , many violent, psychotic who could not or would not follow any protocol much less COVID , I was at a huge risk, normally. I also have asthma, hypothyroidism and a son who had to return home to live due to his poor health from having Crohns Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, and asthma,and he could not be vaccinated. Our risk of survival of this were slim- I retired. I do not regret it in the least , but yes many have loss their lives so unnecessarily. We should not ever forget . We ( my family )remain very cautious to keep “ safe” , and unfortunately even more important now during this time I was diagnosed with breast cancer, it amazes me that so many remain careless, and just plain want to “ dismiss “ COVID ever occurred. But then again lately nothing surprises me anymore except when humans are kind, understanding and respectful! Sorry for length !
Blessings to you, Chris. I also wanted to work to at least age 70, but got out at age 64. I remember during Covid receiving daily emails from headhunters/recruiters asking me to work in NYC. After reading the horror stories from frontline workers, I always declined. Also, I still wear a N95 mask when I’m out.
I must admit that I’d sort of moved on,but nearly to the day from the first time I caught it down I went again,with no idea how,from who or whatever 🤯Are we destined to live like this for the rest of our lives.Here in NZ it’s sort of the thing that isn’t discussed,a bit like cancer in the 60’s.Still this second time was no worse,so I suppose it’s mask up and carry on,as I’m to old to go and live on an island 🏝️
Thanks, Jena. Most of the nurses I worked with retired - some earlier than they had planned. My friend Kiki, RN, died.
I know that the restaurants, bars, and small businesses are glad to see that Covid has “moved on”, but like you, I will always wear a mask, and I will never forget how raw and broken we nurses felt.
Sending warm thoughts and a gentle hug your way, Kim. You and your colleagues certainly deserve recognition. I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. I hope you will continue to share your experiences and stories about her so that her memory is never lost.
I am trying to come to terms with the fact that I will probably never embrace another human being again. I lost four people I loved, my job, and my healthcare to COVID. I have been unable to find work since (I am 68). I have asthma and a compromised immune system. I simply cannot afford to get sick and so I always wear a mask and avoid any and all public places. I live alone and have no family. Thank goodness for my animals.
I hate that when people were struggling to come to terms with COVID our nation’s companies proceeded to raise prices and make life even harder. My grocery bill has tripled and my rent has increased by $500. Often I must choose between eating and paying my bills.
I hate the way Americans seem to have collectively decided that because taking precautions was irritating COVID should be over. I hate that people care so little about one another that they can’t be bothered to wear a mask or keep six feet between us. Meanwhile the virus continues to mutate into more virulent forms and my life gets harder and harder, smaller and smaller.
Dear Jena, my heart goes out to you in recognition of the unexplainable lack of empathy that pervades our society. We have stopped caring about each other and the price is so painful to experience. I pray that better times await you.
Jena, I am so sorry for what has happened to you and I thank you for your courage in telling this very personal and tragic story to hopefully help others. I too still wear a KN95;mask when going out. Our city put a mandate back in place requiring mask wearing. I wish I had answers that were helpful. Does your city have any programs that could help? Do you belong to any online groups?
I was at a pretty low spot when I wrote my response having just spent hours at the DMV with dozens of people (none of whom were wearing masks) dealing with another fallout of COVID. I had to sell my car because I could’t afford the insurance, and now could not renew my driver’s license because my state requires that non-drivers have non-driver’s insurance which costs about $900 a year. So I got a state issued ID and had my life downsized to a few square miles. When I said my life was getting smaller and smaller I meant it, literally.
What I didn’t say, and really should have, is that my inability to find a job has freed me to work on my writing, illustration, and 3D building skills. I am a writer by trade but have spent most of my career using my writing skills to make money for others - insurance companies, big pharma, government training, cancer research, the tourist industry. You get the idea. Now, however, I am deeply engrossed in designing, writing about, and building an immersive 3D environment where visitors can not only read my stories but interact with them as well.
My current project is one I started back in 2009 but had to give up in 2011. I have resurrected it and am very happy with how it is going so far. And before you ask, the written part is on Substack. Just search for “Whales in My Backyard,” or click on the link in my profile. The small team I am working with on the virtual piece is composed of good people who know little or nothing about my circumstances. We are all volunteers working for free, and I know many of them are struggling as well.
It's strange how COVID brought such tragedies: death, long term illness, and knowing there were people sacrificing their lives everyday in the medical field and food industry, etc., without the safety measures they needed. But also, there were gifts like spending more time with the kids, having to slow down, finding working from home can work in many jobs, while in others not so much, seeing our planet literally heal itself due to our stopping, showing us the deficits in our supply chain, the need to regulate corporate greed, how lacking our mental health services are, etc.
At 68, I hope you have Social Security and MediCare at minimum. I know so many who live on an inadequate retirement. I hope your gift , going back to your writing and your 3D world of Uncle D becomes a new income source. ❤️
Thanks for your ever bright and encouraging thoughts, Kimberly. For me one of the highlights of the early years of the pandemic was seeing how quickly the planet responded when given a break from human toxicity.
It was also quite the wake up call for me to see income inequality become so clear. That anyone or any entity felt it was/is acceptable to make life more difficult for those who have the least in the middle of a global pandemic in order to increase profits shocked me. Our species has an enormous reckoning coming.
I too have high hopes and aspirations for my writing and 3D worlds. If I failed to say it before, let me make it clear now. I may have less than I have ever had before, but I am infinitely happier. There is no doubt (at last) in my mind that I am doing what I am meant to do for myself and others. Thank you for being such a wonderful and encouraging supporter. Hugs!
Jena -there are some of “ us humans” who still care , who are kind & caring . Respect others , show compassion. I am sorry that this all has occurred, I hope you find some serenity , peace and healing . Prayers for you .
I know this, Chris or I would not have bothered to reply to Elliot and did not mean to imply otherwise. I am a big believer in sharing our challenges and how we work through them in hopes that others might find solace and perhaps a bit of wisdom as well. Sharing stories also builds empathy and helps us understand one another better. I maintain that the things we share far outweigh our differences. I appreciate the good thoughts and hope life in your neck of the woods is going well.
I am sorry and sad to say the COVID death rate per capita was far worse than Canada’s and many other countries. During covid I felt Trump’s mismanagement bordered on criminal. Many died needlessly.
I consider trump a mass murderer, though he will never be held accountable for his crimes. He tried to target people in blue states, but ended up killing higher numbers of his own followers by turning them against vaccines and masking. I'll never forget his comments that COVID would disappear, like a miracle, and that it would be over by Easter. Criminal.
Unlike 9/11, which had physical reminders in the change to buildings and infrastructure, COVID’s evidence of loss was largely unseen, at least in the aftermath. We can’t afford to forget any of our history, the impact on the future is so powerful. We are trying to come to terms today with the denial of the truth of our past, let’s not do it again.
My husband and I have not had Covid and what we fear now is Long Covid. We are in our 70s, have underlying health issues, have had all vaxxes and boosters. I still wear a KN95 mask when out in any place with multiple people. And when the CDC recently lifted isolation requirements, without need for testing even, I was and am outraged.
It seems we have become a nation of pretenders.
About so many things. It isn’t serving us well. I agree we need to look carefully and honestly at the lasting effects the pandemic has on all of us. As a retired mental health professional I can see how deeply are our wounds. I wonder how the general health of our nation will unfold in the years ahead. I am not optimistic.
Thank you, Elliot, for this reminder of another tragic moment for the world. As I read this article I remembered a lot of the pain and suffering others had. Below my post (as I write) are two posts from nurses, and I think of my first response reading your article, how quickly we have forgotten the National Debt we owe to all the first responders, who put their lives on the line to save as many others as they could, and in the nurses who at least eased the Covid patients into the oblivion of death. But health cre workers, nurses, doctors, ambulance drivers, EMTs, were not the only ones. The grocery and pharmacy clerks, who kept the shelves stocked. the warehouse workers and delivery persons. And yes, the police officers and firefighters who did their best to keep us safe. Yes, a few police officers are bigoted sadists who should have been drowned at birth, but the majority are decent, dedicated individuals. If there is going to be a memorial to the Covid pandemic anywhere, it must convey our (forgotten) gratitude to all these people, many of whom, gave their lives to protect us.
I'd also commemorate the scientists who brought us an mRNA vaccine that saved millions of us from the ravages of this virus. A first ever, breakthrough in vaccines that may, in the very near future, protect us from many other virus caused deadly diseases, like colds, flu, AIDS, and even some cancers.
Next, my thoughts turn to the vast number of persons who haven't a clue about viruses. As a trained scientist, I can tell you they don't even closely resemble the orange balls with blue spikes depicted on television. The viruses I observed through an electron microscope - way back in the early 1970's were colorless and so minuscule they could not and cannot to this day, be seen through a common light microscope. Since before the discovery, or theoretical. existence of viruses, some scientists have argued that they are not even living because they cannot reproduce themselves. I am in the camp of the others who think they are alive because, while they cannot self-produce, they can certainly cause other critters, like Homo sapiens to produce them in the millions.
Finally, a stab at the science deniers. Just because you are not educated in science does not allow you to deny what we, who have been educated, know to be true. Viruses mutate (evolve) more rapidly than any other organism. My daughter who interned at Scripps Institute near San Diego worked on the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). She observed it mutating 4 or more times in 24 hours. Trust me, that is exactly what the SARS-Co-V2 (Covid-19 virus) does. The scientists were not lying, they were reporting on which version of the virus they were seeing at the time they wrote the report. Twenty minutes later it may have been different.
I am intrigued that prior to COVID, the U.S. was ranked by public health organizations as the most prepared for a pandemic stemming from preparations begun during the Bush administration. These preparations were ignored in the U.S., but countries like New Zealand and Taiwan that followed the U.S. playbook fared much better.
How ironic! We had the right plan, but did not execute. Blaming the Trump administration is easy, and largely correct, but funding for the plan was already cut back during Obama's time.
When COVID hit in 2020, I began reading about the black plague in 14th century Europe. The devastation was greater. In places, the plague reduced whole towns to a handful of survivors, but it was a disaster of the same kind as COVID. The subsequent labor shortage marked the curtailment of the power of feudal aristocracy in Europe as workers on the land gained the upper hand in choosing their work. The moral unrest prompted by the plague planted seeds for the Renaissance and Reformation.
Change takes time, but we may be on verge of similarly profound change. Losing over a million people suddenly and prematurely in this country has deep implications that no one fully understands.
I looked at the per capita covid death rates in the U.S., New Zealand, and Taiwan. The U.S. rate is near the top: ~3500/million. N.Z. and Taiwan are near the bottom: both at ~750/million.
An important point in the U.S. CDC playbook is clear communications to the populace on the extent of the threat and most effective means of avoiding infection. Also, protective gear must be stockpiled for emergencies and supply chains for replenishment must be maintained. In the U.S., stockpiles and supply chains were neglected and communication was politicized instead of optimized.
If the U.S. had followed its own playbook, we would probably be looking at ~300,000 deaths from covid, not ~1,100,000 we suffered. 300,000 would still be a disaster close to the death toll of WWII (~400,000).
I hope we can learn a lesson from this, but I'm not sure history is on the side of wisdom.
We should never forget those who were lost during this pandemic and the isolation that contributed in part to the divisiveness of this country today. I had COVID fall, 2020 and I know at my age I am fortunate to still be here. I lost friends in those early months. My health has never been the same. I left New Zealand on March 20 at 4 PM and they closed the country down at midnight. I had been trekking the Milford Track and when I arrived back in Queenstown, a friend texted me and said "you are coming home to chaos, no other way to put it". He died within a month of that text. I still have residual health problems and many others do also. It is difficult to find help, as the symptoms are so similar to other post viral conditions. I believe it is still with us, at least I know it is with me. Just learning to cope and remembering those who are no longer with us. Thanks for writing this.
Of all the things I am angry about with TFG this is topic makes me ragey. Through his narcissism and incompetence a million Americans are dead. How he is not charged with negligent homicide is beyond me. From him not telling us the truth when he knew it, to his son-in-law keeping vital PPE because “it’s ours”, to them believing it was killing off Democrats so let it spread - I’ll never forget or forgive what he put us through.
Thank you Elliot for reminding us that the COVID-19 pandemic is real and there have been more than 7 Million confirmed deaths worldwide but most likely 4 times that number by estimating excess deaths. As many as 1 in 5 individuals of all ages infected with SARS-CoV-2 develop long-term symptoms (> 3 months) that can affect multiple organ systems ( brain, heart, gut, lungs, circulation) and there are no effective treatments for individuals diagnosed with long-COVID. Vaccinations decrease the risk of developing long-COVID, but less than 25% of the US population have received last fall’s most recent vaccine. It is imperative that a campaign be mounted to counter the anti-vax movement as vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 prevents death and decreases the risk of developing long-COVID.
This is an excellent idea. In the 1950s sometime, my father described the flu epidemic that struck his parents’ generation. I couldn’t believe so many had died from the flu, an illness that in my child’s mind seemed ordinary and sort of benign. How? Why did so many die? I wanted to know. Dad said simply, we didn’t know as much then.
Today, and in 2019 when the coronavirus struck, we knew exactly what was happening. Yet, inexplicably and terribly, we failed to respond. We were deliberately poorly prepared, and as the pandemic’s enormity became boldly clear, we devolved into childish blaming, scapegoating, even adopting willful ignorance. With dire consequences for our human family, we behaved unforgivably.
A monument might help us to remember how much such inexcusable conduct cost us. It is certainly worth remembering those who suffered and died at the alter of our collective foolishness. A monument to embody our shame, sadness, and earnest resolve to never repeat this avoidable disaster.
Rather than a monument, I would like to see a strong well funded public health department that teaches prevention. Prevention through being good stewards to the Earth, and by teaching the importance of a healthy whole food plant based diet that boosts your own immune system so you don’t get sick in the first place.
The flu hit so hard because it was new to humans, we didn’t have any natural immunity. It also spread from port to port around the world because there weren’t good public health plans in place, The same with covid. Now that more have immunity from recovering from the disease, and from vaccines, not as many will die, but just like the flu there will still be annual deaths. They will still need to target vaccines to try and deal with the expected variant that year. These are airborne viruses and we have learned about much better building ventilation, ultraviolet light use in some instances for cleaning, the benefits of just soap and water, hand washing, masking, social distancing, There will be more Zoonotic Diseases: Disease Transmitted from Animals to Human. President Obama had a good public health plan developed after the SARs and Ebola outbreaks, but Trump refused to follow it. We can be prepared, but we need good smart people to implement the plan, It will still cause death, isolation, and economic hardship, but it does not need to be as sever as this was, Trump and his ilk have already proven they ar won’t up to the task.
Judging by all the heartfelt and heartbreaking comments, this is still an issue that resonates with many of us. My family and my circle of friends came through those very rough years, although many of them did go through at least one bout of Covid. You—and all your followers who reacted to it—did a service in bringing up a painful subject that many of us would like to forget. Hard as it is, we need to be reminded. I continue to wear a mask when out in public and sometimes I’m the only one doing so. I will keep doing it because I know it’s not gone and it calms my fears. Thank you for your empathy and humanity.
You comment that America is good at looking forward, not backward. Unfortunately America is even better at "looking away" -- avoiding difficult realities and shameful history. In terms of self-reckoning, we can be cowards. What looks like blazing a new trail is sometimes just beating a hasty escape from reality.
“ . . . and how we are eager to move on, except for all those who cannot.”
I’m a retired ICU RN. I retired at the start of Covid. I lost many colleagues who died due to their exposure to Covid and the lack of adequate PPE. And the frontline workers who worked through it are suffering from burnout and PTSD.
I too am a nurse. I was working as an outpatient neuromuscular nurse. I retired after 41 years in Nov of 2022, well into covid. Ours was a different kind of isolation, No longer able to depend on the truth or adequate protection from administration, no longer able to sit with peers for lunch, makeshift rooms to try and maintain distance between workers and many new plexiglass barriers. Always the expectation to work overtime most weeks because so many peers were out with covid, and so many more calls from patients and their families because someone had covid or they needed to talk because someone had just died from covid and they were not allowed to be in the hospital room, The struggle to not become numb, to not have empathy burn out. Then coming home to the covid station where uniforms were taken off for the laundry, alcohol wipes and segregation of all other items, the immediate shower often complete with tears to try and regroup to do it all over again. Standing as witness to the horrible hurt and fear of a populace who was deceived and betrayed by their President and so many ignorant people claiming denials so they could profit from what ever flimflam product they were selling. This often resulted in anger that at times was taken out on us, In all my years this was the first time I had been sworn at and even spit at just because I would have to ask patients, on a daily basis, to please pull up their mask. We learned that we need a President who believes in science and good public health policy. We needed a leader and what we got an idiot pushing ivermectin, bleach, light , and who depended on the advise of a deranged MD who thinks women get endometriosis from sleeping with demons, Covid hit the US really hard because we were slow to know the truth and isolate , also because we are so ill mainly because of the standard American diet, Too many people died because they have been lied to for the past 5 decades about what the body needs to eat and be exposed to for health, and because we had an incompetent President, Obesity which is inflammation of adipose tissue which is an endocrine gland and part of the metabolic syndrome picture including insulin resistance, and hypertension all of which are reversible made us much more susceptible to covid. There have been many many studies now showing that an organic whole food plant based diet can reverse many instances of heart disease, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. We have learned that we have as many cells ( friendly bacteria, viral, fungal archaea) living in a symbiotic relationship with as we have human cells.. If we feed them what they need, they help support the very homeostasis and health of our bodies, And yet, this vital information is not revealed to the public or known by most doctors. or the mainstream media, There are many metadata analysis on the NIH website so the government does know. No one wants to push against Big Ag, Big Pharma, Big chemical , Big health insurance, Big Healthcare, Big oil.. I hope one of the lessons our children come away with is that all Life is interconnected and interdependent. If we are to sustain, to persevere, then we must protect the life in soil, water, and air so it can support our health. We learned the importance of diversity in our microbiome as well as on our planet and how encroaching on animal habitats through farming of monocrops and factory farming of livestock is making everyone sicker. Everyone now ingests approx. a credit card worth of plastic every week. Healthcare is broken. Dr’s are taught very little about nutrition, the very thing that we humans are designed to need for health, I hope to see this vital information taught to doctors so we can help people stay healthy instead of just pushing pills for symptoms. The covid pandemic is awful on so many levels but I hope we don’t just move on and miss the silver lining. Science has learned so much in a short amount of time. I hope the public demands to know these findings and will want to read every article that has the word covid in it. If not, how many have died in vain?
All of this, Linda. Our healthcare system is indeed broken. I started nursing in a faith based hospital, later bought out by a for-profit corporation. They expected us to care for 2-3 intubated patients, we had no breaks - unless we ate during our time in front of the computer screen. “We all have to do more with less”, they said. Elliot has written an excellent piece, but for those of us on the frontline and saw what we saw, we will never forget Covid.
Thank you, Linda, for recounting your experience and lessons learned during and after the Covid pandemic.
I am a retired psychiatric RN, I had to retire early. I planned to work to at least 70 however due to the COVID, my unit was a unit that had most.y certified patients , many violent, psychotic who could not or would not follow any protocol much less COVID , I was at a huge risk, normally. I also have asthma, hypothyroidism and a son who had to return home to live due to his poor health from having Crohns Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, and asthma,and he could not be vaccinated. Our risk of survival of this were slim- I retired. I do not regret it in the least , but yes many have loss their lives so unnecessarily. We should not ever forget . We ( my family )remain very cautious to keep “ safe” , and unfortunately even more important now during this time I was diagnosed with breast cancer, it amazes me that so many remain careless, and just plain want to “ dismiss “ COVID ever occurred. But then again lately nothing surprises me anymore except when humans are kind, understanding and respectful! Sorry for length !
Blessings to you, Chris. I also wanted to work to at least age 70, but got out at age 64. I remember during Covid receiving daily emails from headhunters/recruiters asking me to work in NYC. After reading the horror stories from frontline workers, I always declined. Also, I still wear a N95 mask when I’m out.
I, also, wear a mask. I lost my very best friend, as well as her husband and other friends who were close.
I’m so very sorry, Barbara. I’ll continue wearing a mask, too.
Thank you .. take care too!
I must admit that I’d sort of moved on,but nearly to the day from the first time I caught it down I went again,with no idea how,from who or whatever 🤯Are we destined to live like this for the rest of our lives.Here in NZ it’s sort of the thing that isn’t discussed,a bit like cancer in the 60’s.Still this second time was no worse,so I suppose it’s mask up and carry on,as I’m to old to go and live on an island 🏝️
I don’t know how so many nurses continued to work. They were/are the true heroes of the pandemic.
Thanks, Jena. Most of the nurses I worked with retired - some earlier than they had planned. My friend Kiki, RN, died.
I know that the restaurants, bars, and small businesses are glad to see that Covid has “moved on”, but like you, I will always wear a mask, and I will never forget how raw and broken we nurses felt.
Sending warm thoughts and a gentle hug your way, Kim. You and your colleagues certainly deserve recognition. I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. I hope you will continue to share your experiences and stories about her so that her memory is never lost.
I am trying to come to terms with the fact that I will probably never embrace another human being again. I lost four people I loved, my job, and my healthcare to COVID. I have been unable to find work since (I am 68). I have asthma and a compromised immune system. I simply cannot afford to get sick and so I always wear a mask and avoid any and all public places. I live alone and have no family. Thank goodness for my animals.
I hate that when people were struggling to come to terms with COVID our nation’s companies proceeded to raise prices and make life even harder. My grocery bill has tripled and my rent has increased by $500. Often I must choose between eating and paying my bills.
I hate the way Americans seem to have collectively decided that because taking precautions was irritating COVID should be over. I hate that people care so little about one another that they can’t be bothered to wear a mask or keep six feet between us. Meanwhile the virus continues to mutate into more virulent forms and my life gets harder and harder, smaller and smaller.
COVID PTSD is very real to me.
Dear Jena, my heart goes out to you in recognition of the unexplainable lack of empathy that pervades our society. We have stopped caring about each other and the price is so painful to experience. I pray that better times await you.
Thank you Jeff.
Jena, I am so sorry for what has happened to you and I thank you for your courage in telling this very personal and tragic story to hopefully help others. I too still wear a KN95;mask when going out. Our city put a mandate back in place requiring mask wearing. I wish I had answers that were helpful. Does your city have any programs that could help? Do you belong to any online groups?
Thank you, Linda.
I was at a pretty low spot when I wrote my response having just spent hours at the DMV with dozens of people (none of whom were wearing masks) dealing with another fallout of COVID. I had to sell my car because I could’t afford the insurance, and now could not renew my driver’s license because my state requires that non-drivers have non-driver’s insurance which costs about $900 a year. So I got a state issued ID and had my life downsized to a few square miles. When I said my life was getting smaller and smaller I meant it, literally.
What I didn’t say, and really should have, is that my inability to find a job has freed me to work on my writing, illustration, and 3D building skills. I am a writer by trade but have spent most of my career using my writing skills to make money for others - insurance companies, big pharma, government training, cancer research, the tourist industry. You get the idea. Now, however, I am deeply engrossed in designing, writing about, and building an immersive 3D environment where visitors can not only read my stories but interact with them as well.
My current project is one I started back in 2009 but had to give up in 2011. I have resurrected it and am very happy with how it is going so far. And before you ask, the written part is on Substack. Just search for “Whales in My Backyard,” or click on the link in my profile. The small team I am working with on the virtual piece is composed of good people who know little or nothing about my circumstances. We are all volunteers working for free, and I know many of them are struggling as well.
So thank you for your kind reply and wishes.
It's strange how COVID brought such tragedies: death, long term illness, and knowing there were people sacrificing their lives everyday in the medical field and food industry, etc., without the safety measures they needed. But also, there were gifts like spending more time with the kids, having to slow down, finding working from home can work in many jobs, while in others not so much, seeing our planet literally heal itself due to our stopping, showing us the deficits in our supply chain, the need to regulate corporate greed, how lacking our mental health services are, etc.
At 68, I hope you have Social Security and MediCare at minimum. I know so many who live on an inadequate retirement. I hope your gift , going back to your writing and your 3D world of Uncle D becomes a new income source. ❤️
Thanks for your ever bright and encouraging thoughts, Kimberly. For me one of the highlights of the early years of the pandemic was seeing how quickly the planet responded when given a break from human toxicity.
It was also quite the wake up call for me to see income inequality become so clear. That anyone or any entity felt it was/is acceptable to make life more difficult for those who have the least in the middle of a global pandemic in order to increase profits shocked me. Our species has an enormous reckoning coming.
I too have high hopes and aspirations for my writing and 3D worlds. If I failed to say it before, let me make it clear now. I may have less than I have ever had before, but I am infinitely happier. There is no doubt (at last) in my mind that I am doing what I am meant to do for myself and others. Thank you for being such a wonderful and encouraging supporter. Hugs!
Subscribed. Thanks!
Thank you!
Jena -there are some of “ us humans” who still care , who are kind & caring . Respect others , show compassion. I am sorry that this all has occurred, I hope you find some serenity , peace and healing . Prayers for you .
I know this, Chris or I would not have bothered to reply to Elliot and did not mean to imply otherwise. I am a big believer in sharing our challenges and how we work through them in hopes that others might find solace and perhaps a bit of wisdom as well. Sharing stories also builds empathy and helps us understand one another better. I maintain that the things we share far outweigh our differences. I appreciate the good thoughts and hope life in your neck of the woods is going well.
Exactly.
💔
I am sorry and sad to say the COVID death rate per capita was far worse than Canada’s and many other countries. During covid I felt Trump’s mismanagement bordered on criminal. Many died needlessly.
I consider trump a mass murderer, though he will never be held accountable for his crimes. He tried to target people in blue states, but ended up killing higher numbers of his own followers by turning them against vaccines and masking. I'll never forget his comments that COVID would disappear, like a miracle, and that it would be over by Easter. Criminal.
Another impact was the myriads of front line workers who had to take enormous risks during the pandemic…
and the many health care workers who retired or quit earlier than expected due to stresses of COVID.
"I join those calling for a national Covid memorial in Washington. On the National Mall."
I'm serious now: the best memorial would be some kind of hole in the ground to signify the holes in our collective hearts from Covid.
Unlike 9/11, which had physical reminders in the change to buildings and infrastructure, COVID’s evidence of loss was largely unseen, at least in the aftermath. We can’t afford to forget any of our history, the impact on the future is so powerful. We are trying to come to terms today with the denial of the truth of our past, let’s not do it again.
My husband and I have not had Covid and what we fear now is Long Covid. We are in our 70s, have underlying health issues, have had all vaxxes and boosters. I still wear a KN95 mask when out in any place with multiple people. And when the CDC recently lifted isolation requirements, without need for testing even, I was and am outraged.
It seems we have become a nation of pretenders.
About so many things. It isn’t serving us well. I agree we need to look carefully and honestly at the lasting effects the pandemic has on all of us. As a retired mental health professional I can see how deeply are our wounds. I wonder how the general health of our nation will unfold in the years ahead. I am not optimistic.
Thank you, Elliot, for this reminder of another tragic moment for the world. As I read this article I remembered a lot of the pain and suffering others had. Below my post (as I write) are two posts from nurses, and I think of my first response reading your article, how quickly we have forgotten the National Debt we owe to all the first responders, who put their lives on the line to save as many others as they could, and in the nurses who at least eased the Covid patients into the oblivion of death. But health cre workers, nurses, doctors, ambulance drivers, EMTs, were not the only ones. The grocery and pharmacy clerks, who kept the shelves stocked. the warehouse workers and delivery persons. And yes, the police officers and firefighters who did their best to keep us safe. Yes, a few police officers are bigoted sadists who should have been drowned at birth, but the majority are decent, dedicated individuals. If there is going to be a memorial to the Covid pandemic anywhere, it must convey our (forgotten) gratitude to all these people, many of whom, gave their lives to protect us.
I'd also commemorate the scientists who brought us an mRNA vaccine that saved millions of us from the ravages of this virus. A first ever, breakthrough in vaccines that may, in the very near future, protect us from many other virus caused deadly diseases, like colds, flu, AIDS, and even some cancers.
Next, my thoughts turn to the vast number of persons who haven't a clue about viruses. As a trained scientist, I can tell you they don't even closely resemble the orange balls with blue spikes depicted on television. The viruses I observed through an electron microscope - way back in the early 1970's were colorless and so minuscule they could not and cannot to this day, be seen through a common light microscope. Since before the discovery, or theoretical. existence of viruses, some scientists have argued that they are not even living because they cannot reproduce themselves. I am in the camp of the others who think they are alive because, while they cannot self-produce, they can certainly cause other critters, like Homo sapiens to produce them in the millions.
Finally, a stab at the science deniers. Just because you are not educated in science does not allow you to deny what we, who have been educated, know to be true. Viruses mutate (evolve) more rapidly than any other organism. My daughter who interned at Scripps Institute near San Diego worked on the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). She observed it mutating 4 or more times in 24 hours. Trust me, that is exactly what the SARS-Co-V2 (Covid-19 virus) does. The scientists were not lying, they were reporting on which version of the virus they were seeing at the time they wrote the report. Twenty minutes later it may have been different.
I am intrigued that prior to COVID, the U.S. was ranked by public health organizations as the most prepared for a pandemic stemming from preparations begun during the Bush administration. These preparations were ignored in the U.S., but countries like New Zealand and Taiwan that followed the U.S. playbook fared much better.
How ironic! We had the right plan, but did not execute. Blaming the Trump administration is easy, and largely correct, but funding for the plan was already cut back during Obama's time.
When COVID hit in 2020, I began reading about the black plague in 14th century Europe. The devastation was greater. In places, the plague reduced whole towns to a handful of survivors, but it was a disaster of the same kind as COVID. The subsequent labor shortage marked the curtailment of the power of feudal aristocracy in Europe as workers on the land gained the upper hand in choosing their work. The moral unrest prompted by the plague planted seeds for the Renaissance and Reformation.
Change takes time, but we may be on verge of similarly profound change. Losing over a million people suddenly and prematurely in this country has deep implications that no one fully understands.
I looked at the per capita covid death rates in the U.S., New Zealand, and Taiwan. The U.S. rate is near the top: ~3500/million. N.Z. and Taiwan are near the bottom: both at ~750/million.
An important point in the U.S. CDC playbook is clear communications to the populace on the extent of the threat and most effective means of avoiding infection. Also, protective gear must be stockpiled for emergencies and supply chains for replenishment must be maintained. In the U.S., stockpiles and supply chains were neglected and communication was politicized instead of optimized.
If the U.S. had followed its own playbook, we would probably be looking at ~300,000 deaths from covid, not ~1,100,000 we suffered. 300,000 would still be a disaster close to the death toll of WWII (~400,000).
I hope we can learn a lesson from this, but I'm not sure history is on the side of wisdom.
We should never forget those who were lost during this pandemic and the isolation that contributed in part to the divisiveness of this country today. I had COVID fall, 2020 and I know at my age I am fortunate to still be here. I lost friends in those early months. My health has never been the same. I left New Zealand on March 20 at 4 PM and they closed the country down at midnight. I had been trekking the Milford Track and when I arrived back in Queenstown, a friend texted me and said "you are coming home to chaos, no other way to put it". He died within a month of that text. I still have residual health problems and many others do also. It is difficult to find help, as the symptoms are so similar to other post viral conditions. I believe it is still with us, at least I know it is with me. Just learning to cope and remembering those who are no longer with us. Thanks for writing this.
Of all the things I am angry about with TFG this is topic makes me ragey. Through his narcissism and incompetence a million Americans are dead. How he is not charged with negligent homicide is beyond me. From him not telling us the truth when he knew it, to his son-in-law keeping vital PPE because “it’s ours”, to them believing it was killing off Democrats so let it spread - I’ll never forget or forgive what he put us through.
Thank you Elliot for reminding us that the COVID-19 pandemic is real and there have been more than 7 Million confirmed deaths worldwide but most likely 4 times that number by estimating excess deaths. As many as 1 in 5 individuals of all ages infected with SARS-CoV-2 develop long-term symptoms (> 3 months) that can affect multiple organ systems ( brain, heart, gut, lungs, circulation) and there are no effective treatments for individuals diagnosed with long-COVID. Vaccinations decrease the risk of developing long-COVID, but less than 25% of the US population have received last fall’s most recent vaccine. It is imperative that a campaign be mounted to counter the anti-vax movement as vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 prevents death and decreases the risk of developing long-COVID.
This is an excellent idea. In the 1950s sometime, my father described the flu epidemic that struck his parents’ generation. I couldn’t believe so many had died from the flu, an illness that in my child’s mind seemed ordinary and sort of benign. How? Why did so many die? I wanted to know. Dad said simply, we didn’t know as much then.
Today, and in 2019 when the coronavirus struck, we knew exactly what was happening. Yet, inexplicably and terribly, we failed to respond. We were deliberately poorly prepared, and as the pandemic’s enormity became boldly clear, we devolved into childish blaming, scapegoating, even adopting willful ignorance. With dire consequences for our human family, we behaved unforgivably.
A monument might help us to remember how much such inexcusable conduct cost us. It is certainly worth remembering those who suffered and died at the alter of our collective foolishness. A monument to embody our shame, sadness, and earnest resolve to never repeat this avoidable disaster.
Rather than a monument, I would like to see a strong well funded public health department that teaches prevention. Prevention through being good stewards to the Earth, and by teaching the importance of a healthy whole food plant based diet that boosts your own immune system so you don’t get sick in the first place.
Well said. As a healthcare professional the anger that I feel, towards the mismanagement and misinformation, tends to render me speechless.
The flu hit so hard because it was new to humans, we didn’t have any natural immunity. It also spread from port to port around the world because there weren’t good public health plans in place, The same with covid. Now that more have immunity from recovering from the disease, and from vaccines, not as many will die, but just like the flu there will still be annual deaths. They will still need to target vaccines to try and deal with the expected variant that year. These are airborne viruses and we have learned about much better building ventilation, ultraviolet light use in some instances for cleaning, the benefits of just soap and water, hand washing, masking, social distancing, There will be more Zoonotic Diseases: Disease Transmitted from Animals to Human. President Obama had a good public health plan developed after the SARs and Ebola outbreaks, but Trump refused to follow it. We can be prepared, but we need good smart people to implement the plan, It will still cause death, isolation, and economic hardship, but it does not need to be as sever as this was, Trump and his ilk have already proven they ar won’t up to the task.
Judging by all the heartfelt and heartbreaking comments, this is still an issue that resonates with many of us. My family and my circle of friends came through those very rough years, although many of them did go through at least one bout of Covid. You—and all your followers who reacted to it—did a service in bringing up a painful subject that many of us would like to forget. Hard as it is, we need to be reminded. I continue to wear a mask when out in public and sometimes I’m the only one doing so. I will keep doing it because I know it’s not gone and it calms my fears. Thank you for your empathy and humanity.
You comment that America is good at looking forward, not backward. Unfortunately America is even better at "looking away" -- avoiding difficult realities and shameful history. In terms of self-reckoning, we can be cowards. What looks like blazing a new trail is sometimes just beating a hasty escape from reality.
It’s as if people do not think that it exists, or that it is not deadly anymore. People compare it with the flu as if they are the same.