How Is The Pandemic Still Affecting Your Life?

[Prosper Abusah]

As a heavily immunocompromised person , I still take a lot of precautions . I wear mask when I leave my house . I don’t go to social gatherings . My decision to go to places is made on the basis of not many new cases of covid in the community is reported . When the numbers are very high I take strict precautions .

[Deleted User]

We still take strict precautions and will continue. FFP2, disinfection, home nesting 🙂

[MikeS]

As long as I am taking Prednisone I will continue to mask in crowded and/or poorly ventilated public buildings, particularly as long as COVID continues to be a thing.  Basically I only go out to shop for groceries/necessities.  It’s easy to manage since I’m retired, but it still severely limits having any social life (restaurants, movies, etc.). I also refuse to travel in any vehicle (plane, train, bus, etc.) other than my car.

[Delia Hernandez]

The truth is, it deeply affected my life. But I’m not someone who dwells on the past. I prefer to focus on the present and manage myself as best as I can towards the future.

[John Shanks]

I still wear a mask when I go out. I avoid stores like Home Depot because of the animosity of the other customers to the mask. (Verbal abuse and physical assault). People think its political. I hope it is just Florida. Travel using our car. I will soon travel by air, just goung to mask up and hope.

[MikeS]

I’m currently taking Prednisone.  I recently started wearing my mask only in public places that are crowded (indoors or outdoors) or poorly ventilated (indoors).  For example, when I go to Target, which is spacious and well-ventilated, I only mask up during crowded holiday shopping days when aisles are crowded and check-out lines are long. I also wear a mask when getting a haircut

I am also wary of getting close to anyone whom I don’t know well, especially if they seem like they might be even a little sick, and will mask-up.

[Marguerite Thibeau]

I still take full precautions, use KN95 masks inside or out. I watch the sewer water counts, plan carefully to avoid busy times. I hate that even Cancer centers o longer mask. It dries me crazy that medical workers don’t mask.  My local family are very careful as we all have autoimmune issues.  We have not gotten Covid, but those who weren’t careful have had it once or twice.

We started masking when the first cases began.  We haven’t had any flus or colds.  I will always mask, the benefits are well worth it.

[Marlene Laird]

My husband and I stay home.  We only leave the house if going to get our blood drawn for labs, to a doctor’s appointment we cannot do by phone, or to our grandchildren’s birthday parties.  We buy all of our groceries and other things we need online and have it either delivered by Instacart or shipped to us.  We also take vitamin D3 pills twice a day.  Neither of us have had a COVID shot and do not plan to.  I have MG and take Mestinon.  He is disabled from neck surgery.  Neither of us have had COVID nor the flu or sinus infections.

[Tim]

Our life is the same as always, though shed of the pandemic paranoia. I am considered immune-compromised by the treatments and medications I’ve taken the past few years, but that has not deterred me from enjoying life and the presence of others. I never wore a mask (difficulty breathing) unless it was required (visiting folks in the hospital, rehab, and Church for a while).

We attend Church every week, a bible study on Monday evenings, and enjoy the company of others at restaurants and theaters. No, we do not live fearfully nor isolated. I did not and will not get vaccinated for “protection” of viruses. I’ve gotten the flu 3x in the past 4 years and treat it as we always have, with rest and staying home.

I’m 70 years old, have work-related knowledge and experience in Virology, so my decisions were based on personal knowledge, not from the new media. While some feel more comfortable with other tactics of protection, I’m perfectly healthy with mine.

BTW, consider risks from vaccines when immuno-compromised.

[Sharon Haw]

Another response mentioned anti-maskers. I have family members that think I’m over-reacting when I wear a mask, and when they comment, I simply retort that I’m not asking them to wear a mask. I’m wearing it to protect myself because I have no immune system.

Before Covid, I never wore a mask, even when I should have, like on planes (airlines don’t change their HEPA filters often enough) because I take Cellcept (immune suppressants). The pandemic only reinforced that I should take more precautions. I found the key is to avoid high touch environments, crowds and anywhere sick people go (e.g., labs, drug stores, doctor’s offices) and if I must go, I book for a less busy time or wear a N95 or level 3 ASTM mask.

Now I avoid high-touch environments like grocery stores and enclosed, busy spaces. I get groceries and other items delivered. I wear a N95 mask on planes and airports. I usually avoid air travel and public transportation in favour of my own vehicle.

If a family member is sick, we skip Sunday dinner. If I’m sick, I stay home, run my HEPA air cleaner on high with a fresh filter and stick to my spaces (separate floor from my son who lives with me), and take precautions (mask, use wipes, etc.) if he must go through my part of the house. He has his own floor with a second large HEPA air cleaner.

Even when I’m not sick, I meet friends on outdoor patios, or when restaurants are less busy. I plan trips for first thing in the morning at places with large spaces so air exchange has been working overnight. My son goes to the drug store for me. I wear a mask in any medical facility. I wear a mask and go to a private gym that still limits the number of people in the gym and I go at the least busy time of day. I asked my physiotherapist’s office to call me to reschedule my appointment if they book a class around my regular time.

I’ve found that certain brands of Level 3 ASTM surgical masks and N95 medical masks are more breathable than others (e.g., Medpro works best for me), and some are better than the usual procedure mask that most people wear.

[standia]

I never got Covid, but I am 79 and have GMG. I am fully vaxed and Boosted, but I never go out without a certified N95 Mask. I have never personally experienced any antagonism from antivaxers in my city.

[Bambilin]

I agree with all of the people wearing masks and avoiding crowds. I don’t play duplicate bridge anymore because of that. Fortunately a group of 8-9 folks at my church formed a Zoom group 5 years ago and we’re still going strong conducting our own worship service one morning and having a gab session on another. Once a year we gather outside at a park for a distanced picnic of sorts. I joined Walmart+ to have groceries delivered. And we use Amazon and Sam’s Club for other items. Basically I’m a hermit.

[Mark Cox]

After being hit hard with my first symptoms of MG only a couple days after my second Moderna shot, I will always struggle not to believe that the shot had something to do with triggering my MG in the first place…. Guess only in time will we ever understand the effects of Covid and the Covid vaccines that came along with it. I was never diagnosed with Covid but lost my sense of smell two years ago and still don’t have it back… I’ll always wonder why Covid took the strongest and youngest of my three close cousins when they all contracted Covid at the same time…Like many others with MG, I too want to live the best life under our circumstances and have a lot to live for but I also lack confidence in my immune system since contracting MG and still practice the same Covid related precautions such as a much better hygiene washing my hands regularly, watching what I touch and breathe and wearing mask in crowded places such as airports, hospitals and ballgames… It’s unfortunate how quickly society has forgotten Covid. If there was a positive for COVID, we all quickly identified our hygiene short falls and improved dramatically or at least some of us did, But on the other hand how quickly society forgets these things when they don’t have an illness such as ours that makes folks like myself much more defensive in protecting ourselves when it comes to hygiene…Im also noticing at the stores now that rarely they fill the sterile wipe containers to wipe off the shopping carts etc…. In short, not much has changed for me since Covid other than being more aware of my MG and practicing all the hygiene precautions I learned during Covid.

Regards

[Amy Cessina]

I should take more precautions because I don’t want to get Covid again. My MG was triggered by a severe viral illness in 2018. I try to avoid groups of small children and at work if someone sits next to me sick I get up and move and I don’t care. Keep my distance at big stores and make sure I’m aware of large groups nearby.