Coronavirus prep

1184185187189190498

Replies

  • JustSomeEm
    JustSomeEm Posts: 20,254 MFP Moderator
    edited June 2020
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    Athijade wrote: »
    I am gonna say it and if I get downvoted to heck then so be it.

    I wear a mask the vast VAST majority of time. However, I have PTSD and a trigger is having something over my face/mouth. This is due to 2 different incidents (one medical and one not). 95% of the time I can handle it long enough to get my groceries and leave the store. 5% of the time I can't. However, the times I have had trouble didn't start to manifest until I was IN the store and doing my shopping. I HAD to remove my mask before I went into a full blown attack and started screaming or crying or even falling to the floor in a ball. I had to then find a quiet spot in the store to get my body to stop the "fight or flight" reaction. I then had to finish my shopping without a mask (though I became even more diligent about staying far away from people).

    Have you ever seen someone have a panic attack or PTSD episode? It's not pretty.

    I guess all I am saying is to not just jump to conclusions if someone isn't wearing a mask at that specific moment in time. Not everyone not wearing one is doing so because "MEH FREEDOM!!". Not everyone not wearing one has a "death wish". Are those people out there? Absolutely and they annoy the heck out of me because they make it harder for everyone else.

    Exactly--and it's for people like you that really can't wear a mask, that the majority should be. I think that's what's firing up everyone else who is careful, and thinking of people they care about, and wearing that mask even if it's hot and uncomfortable. They see too many people without and it can't mean that they all have medical conditions. You are to be commended for trying to wear it as much as possible. No one thinks everyone can. Thank you for doing your best.

    So well said by both of you.My beef with anti-maskers are the ones who are simply being stubborn, contrary and not giving any thought to other people. Definitely Athijade isn't one of those. My feeling is you're one of the few who think it through and try that hard though; at least of the non-maskers. I do see where lots of people have a mask covering only their mouth and I wonder if it's so they can breathe easier through their nose? A mask, especially, in hot and humid weather, can make you feel like you're suffocating to some degree. And I cannot imagine wearing one for a whole work day as some people are required to. :(

    I made the mistake of stopping at the Salvation Army on my way home from my sister's house this a.m. I was the only person with a mask on out of maybe 8 people there, including a woman coming into the store looking for a job. :/
    Our area has been very lucky with low numbers and nobody at the moment known to be positive but all it takes is that one person to enter our community, not even knowing they're contagious. :(

    My niece lives in Maine and she was relating a story about a hair salon with 2 hairdressers, both ended up testing positive after they'd unknowingly exposed 300 or so customers. But at their work, they required all patrons and employees to wear masks. Not one of those 300+ people caught Covid from those 2 hairdressers. If anyone knows this story please confirm because it's come through 2 people and I'm not 100% sure of it's accuracy. But I still find it very interesting, possibly indicating the success of wearing a mask.

    I didn't find one in Maine, but another story from Missouri.

    Edited to include the link:

    https://www.businessinsider.com/two-missouri-hairstylists-with-coronavirus-saw-140-clients-none-infected-2020-6

    :expressionless:
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,493 Member
    IL released guidelines for the return to school. All faculty, staff and students must wear masks (unless documented medical reasons). My wife is in education. Many kids can't keep their fingers out of the booger vault for more than 10 minutes.
    Can't imagine them wearing a mask correctly for an entire school day.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    So, for background, in my county our floating average of daily cases has more than doubled, hospitalizations have more than doubled, and positivity rate has more than doubled. We are a hot spot in a hot state, getting worse daily.

    I did my two weeks shopping and chores for my own household and my mother today. I am so fed up and frustrated with people. We did a pickup at Kroger. As usual they didn’t bother to get half the stuff, so my husband had to go in, where the stuff they were supposedly out of was readily available on shelves. The guy who brought our stuff out wasn’t wearing a mask. Local ordinance says he has to. My husband asked where his mask was, and he said, “Oh, they want us to wear them, but I’m not worried about it. I don’t feel sick and I haven’t been anywhere.”

    So my husband had to have a talk with his manager. Who claimed to be appalled. But then he spotted the same manager talking to a stocker with his mask over his chin. Zero masks on customers.

    Next, Walgreens. Masks on everyone working there, but chin only. No masks on customers.

    Then trying to get an octagenerian to operate zoom. We got my mom hooked up, then realized all the friends she is trying to zoom with are octagenarians too. So had to provide tech support for half a dozen different people. My mom’s thing is forgetting all her passwords and resetting them after being locked out for entering them wrong. So she has a book for all her different passwords. Which has no indication of which password does which thing. She seems to think they are interchangeable. That took a good three hours.

    Then the gas station. They have fried chicken there and I suggested some as a treat, since we were half past fed up. My husband came out complaining that he was literally bumped into by 18 different people, none wearing masks except one construction worker. I said that if that was the case he should have just left, and he said he didn’t want to disappoint me. I said I would rather be disappointed than dead. At least the chicken and the people who made it were behind plexiglas.

    Our mayor has said we are not dropping back to phase 1, because what would be the point when people aren’t even following phase 2? He said that without community buy-in, there aren’t enough cops in the world to enforce proper behavior. And that the community seemed to think covid came with an off switch, that when they entered phase 2 everyone just stopped trying.

    I just would prefer not to die, please, and no one else seems all that interested in helping me stay alive. Grrrrrrrrr.

    I can so related to octogenarian tech support!

    In her case, her computer is in a room that gets to be in the 90 degrees F in the afternoon this time of year...and the afternoon is when I'm there.

    My sister is staying with our Mom for a few weeks and I'm trying to onload some tech support on her :lol:
  • ElioraFR
    ElioraFR Posts: 91 Member
    @Athijade
    It is difficult ordering groceries. In our own situation it is better than going to the store. Nearly every order we get we have 4 items that are not available. We pay 9.50 Euros for delivery no matter how much we order. Often the delivery people are not masked. We just tell them to leave it by the door. Although things aren't perfect, and like you, we don't have money to waste, we definately stand behind staying in at all costs and waiting until people get their heads screwed on right. Even if it is a year before we can go out its better than having SarsCov2 to battle.
  • moonangel12
    moonangel12 Posts: 971 Member
    JustSomeEm wrote: »
    Athijade wrote: »
    I wanted to pop in and say thank you for all the kind words and support. I was worried about posting about my issues and possible backlash, but you all reminded me that there are awesome people out there.

    Every time I wear a mask it is a mental and physical struggle. Somedays I can win that struggle and do my shopping without much trouble. Other days... I just can't. My mind will begin to panic, flashing back to the instances that caused my PTSD. I will try and logically think it through, that I am just wearing a mask because it is the right thing to do, no one is forcing me to do so, but it just doesn't work. When I begin to panic my heart rate increases and I begin to gasp for air. Which makes it WORSE because then I really feel like I can't breathe and I panic more. It's a horrible cycle until I take the mask off. Then I am "free" and my mind will start to calm down though it is not immediate. If I try to put the mask back on, then I end up right back where I was.

    I have tried to have groceries delivered and it was a horrible experience. So many substitutions. Which may be fine for most people, but when you have food allergies and restrictions due to medical issues a substitution may mean you can't eat it. For example, I ordered Coconut Aminos because I am allergic to soy. They brought me Liquid Aminos which are made with soy protein. I had checked the "no substitutions" box but it didn't seem to help. So wasted money there. Also, to be honest, it is a budget thing as well. Paying for delivery takes me over my budget and I just can't keep doing that.

    So I wear my mask the best I can and try to do my shopping quickly.

    Hugs to you @Athijade - the fact that you confront your demons to try to protect others is incredibly brave.



    So, predictably (since I was pretty sure it was an ear infection), my COVID test came back negative (on Tuesday)... AND my symptoms have mostly gone away as of Monday (thankfully - I was pretty dizzy and tired). Prior to getting sick, I had been reporting to the office for work that is fairly critical and cannot be done from my home office. I let them know the negative result on Tuesday and that I planned to be in the office on Wednesday, and was told that I had to stay away for 10 days after the last of the symptoms even with a negative test. The stated reason was because of high false-negatives with the testing. So, we're testing people with tests that are unreliable? Why bother? Anyway, I'm frustrated because 4 months ago, I'd have gone to work sick and done my job (and I know how that sounds, I'm trying to think more of my coworkers than the job nowadays). I did the 'right' thing, and now even with a negative test, I'm not being allowed to do my job (or at least the part of it that was supposedly so critical I needed to be in the office). There should be a cranky emoticon, dangit.

    My husband’s work’s official policy is that you have to be quarantined for 14 days even after known direct exposure, not just symptoms or a positive test. Makes it hard when you have a skeleton crew anyway.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    Interesting article about how the U.S. ended up in this situation now:

    How the Virus Won https://nyti.ms/2NumkRq
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Athijade wrote: »
    I am gonna say it and if I get downvoted to heck then so be it.

    I wear a mask the vast VAST majority of time. However, I have PTSD and a trigger is having something over my face/mouth. This is due to 2 different incidents (one medical and one not). 95% of the time I can handle it long enough to get my groceries and leave the store. 5% of the time I can't. However, the times I have had trouble didn't start to manifest until I was IN the store and doing my shopping. I HAD to remove my mask before I went into a full blown attack and started screaming or crying or even falling to the floor in a ball. I had to then find a quiet spot in the store to get my body to stop the "fight or flight" reaction. I then had to finish my shopping without a mask (though I became even more diligent about staying far away from people).

    Have you ever seen someone have a panic attack or PTSD episode? It's not pretty.

    I guess all I am saying is to not just jump to conclusions if someone isn't wearing a mask at that specific moment in time. Not everyone not wearing one is doing so because "MEH FREEDOM!!". Not everyone not wearing one has a "death wish". Are those people out there? Absolutely and they annoy the heck out of me because they make it harder for everyone else.

    I've had panic attacks :(

    Would wearing a face shield work for you?
    Athijade wrote: »
    I wanted to pop in and say thank you for all the kind words and support. I was worried about posting about my issues and possible backlash, but you all reminded me that there are awesome people out there.

    Every time I wear a mask it is a mental and physical struggle. Somedays I can win that struggle and do my shopping without much trouble. Other days... I just can't. My mind will begin to panic, flashing back to the instances that caused my PTSD. I will try and logically think it through, that I am just wearing a mask because it is the right thing to do, no one is forcing me to do so, but it just doesn't work. When I begin to panic my heart rate increases and I begin to gasp for air. Which makes it WORSE because then I really feel like I can't breathe and I panic more. It's a horrible cycle until I take the mask off. Then I am "free" and my mind will start to calm down though it is not immediate. If I try to put the mask back on, then I end up right back where I was.

    I have tried to have groceries delivered and it was a horrible experience. So many substitutions. Which may be fine for most people, but when you have food allergies and restrictions due to medical issues a substitution may mean you can't eat it. For example, I ordered Coconut Aminos because I am allergic to soy. They brought me Liquid Aminos which are made with soy protein. I had checked the "no substitutions" box but it didn't seem to help. So wasted money there. Also, to be honest, it is a budget thing as well. Paying for delivery takes me over my budget and I just can't keep doing that.

    So I wear my mask the best I can and try to do my shopping quickly.

    I would think whatever service you used, if you had checked "no substitutions" and they subbed anyway, you could get a refund. If you go this route again, perhaps take a screen shot of your order with this info and save it until the order has been delivered? I make screenshots with Amazon when I use Prime two day (usually I use No Rush) and I'm skeptical it will actually come in two days so if it fails, I am in a better position to negotiate for a credit.

    Not sure what service you're using, but Whole Foods has been great about giving me refunds when they mess something up.

    I know with Instacart you can message your picker.

    I just used Instacart once - I hate that they inflate prices and don't honor store sales. With Whole Foods, I get the sales and since I always make the minimum my only extra charge is the tip for the driver. I believe Peapod (which may just be a local thing) does not inflate prices. So perhaps there is a delivery service that is more budget friendly for you.

    Oh, there may be pickup available too. My mom gets Peapod pickup and I believe there is no charge for that. They put the groceries in her back seat. This would cut down on the time you have to use a mask. However, it may not cut down on messed up orders :(
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    JustSomeEm wrote: »
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    Athijade wrote: »
    I am gonna say it and if I get downvoted to heck then so be it.

    I wear a mask the vast VAST majority of time. However, I have PTSD and a trigger is having something over my face/mouth. This is due to 2 different incidents (one medical and one not). 95% of the time I can handle it long enough to get my groceries and leave the store. 5% of the time I can't. However, the times I have had trouble didn't start to manifest until I was IN the store and doing my shopping. I HAD to remove my mask before I went into a full blown attack and started screaming or crying or even falling to the floor in a ball. I had to then find a quiet spot in the store to get my body to stop the "fight or flight" reaction. I then had to finish my shopping without a mask (though I became even more diligent about staying far away from people).

    Have you ever seen someone have a panic attack or PTSD episode? It's not pretty.

    I guess all I am saying is to not just jump to conclusions if someone isn't wearing a mask at that specific moment in time. Not everyone not wearing one is doing so because "MEH FREEDOM!!". Not everyone not wearing one has a "death wish". Are those people out there? Absolutely and they annoy the heck out of me because they make it harder for everyone else.

    Exactly--and it's for people like you that really can't wear a mask, that the majority should be. I think that's what's firing up everyone else who is careful, and thinking of people they care about, and wearing that mask even if it's hot and uncomfortable. They see too many people without and it can't mean that they all have medical conditions. You are to be commended for trying to wear it as much as possible. No one thinks everyone can. Thank you for doing your best.

    So well said by both of you.My beef with anti-maskers are the ones who are simply being stubborn, contrary and not giving any thought to other people. Definitely Athijade isn't one of those. My feeling is you're one of the few who think it through and try that hard though; at least of the non-maskers. I do see where lots of people have a mask covering only their mouth and I wonder if it's so they can breathe easier through their nose? A mask, especially, in hot and humid weather, can make you feel like you're suffocating to some degree. And I cannot imagine wearing one for a whole work day as some people are required to. :(

    I made the mistake of stopping at the Salvation Army on my way home from my sister's house this a.m. I was the only person with a mask on out of maybe 8 people there, including a woman coming into the store looking for a job. :/
    Our area has been very lucky with low numbers and nobody at the moment known to be positive but all it takes is that one person to enter our community, not even knowing they're contagious. :(

    My niece lives in Maine and she was relating a story about a hair salon with 2 hairdressers, both ended up testing positive after they'd unknowingly exposed 300 or so customers. But at their work, they required all patrons and employees to wear masks. Not one of those 300+ people caught Covid from those 2 hairdressers. If anyone knows this story please confirm because it's come through 2 people and I'm not 100% sure of it's accuracy. But I still find it very interesting, possibly indicating the success of wearing a mask.

    I didn't find one in Maine, but another story from Missouri.

    Edited to include the link:

    https://www.businessinsider.com/two-missouri-hairstylists-with-coronavirus-saw-140-clients-none-infected-2020-6

    :expressionless:

    Thank you Em, for sharing that story!! Could be a different case or my niece did some embellishing. :)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I am also seeing here (in Italy) advertising on TV for products, especially foods, have people wearing masks. Since there is the famous "herd mentality" then the more people that wear them--the more people will wear them. As I've mentioned our numbers keep going down. There are a few clusters, that are quickly isolated, with the majority of cases still in the North.
    I am saddened by all your reports from the States. This means that you'll have to live with the fear of catching the virus much longer. I'll be leaving soon for the summer, and will report in in September. I hope to hear that the situation in the States has gotten better.

    I work very hard to avoid watching commercials and have not seen many in the US with mask wearers - maybe just a few from places like Amazon. I think these were youtube commercials rather than on regular TV.

    For people in the US who do see more commercials - what are you seeing? Are there PSAs (public service announcements) about mask use?
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    edited June 2020
    Athijade wrote: »
    I wanted to pop in and say thank you for all the kind words and support. I was worried about posting about my issues and possible backlash, but you all reminded me that there are awesome people out there.

    Every time I wear a mask it is a mental and physical struggle. Somedays I can win that struggle and do my shopping without much trouble. Other days... I just can't. My mind will begin to panic, flashing back to the instances that caused my PTSD. I will try and logically think it through, that I am just wearing a mask because it is the right thing to do, no one is forcing me to do so, but it just doesn't work. When I begin to panic my heart rate increases and I begin to gasp for air. Which makes it WORSE because then I really feel like I can't breathe and I panic more. It's a horrible cycle until I take the mask off. Then I am "free" and my mind will start to calm down though it is not immediate. If I try to put the mask back on, then I end up right back where I was.

    I have tried to have groceries delivered and it was a horrible experience. So many substitutions. Which may be fine for most people, but when you have food allergies and restrictions due to medical issues a substitution may mean you can't eat it. For example, I ordered Coconut Aminos because I am allergic to soy. They brought me Liquid Aminos which are made with soy protein. I had checked the "no substitutions" box but it didn't seem to help. So wasted money there. Also, to be honest, it is a budget thing as well. Paying for delivery takes me over my budget and I just can't keep doing that.

    So I wear my mask the best I can and try to do my shopping quickly.

    Hugs to you!! Have you looked into getting a face shield? Would that help at all?
    ETA: I see Kshama already brought that up. :)