Living in Argentina during the year 2020 is an experience that we could never have imagined even in the most Orwellian of a script.
I have no memory of having lived through a silent war.
They say it all started in a market in Wuhan, China.
The stories were a bit erratic and gradual, it was in a Chinese town (Wuhan has or had a population of 10 million souls) that due to their cruel practices and their particular way of feeding, they caused a virus to pass from bat to man or that there were no adequate biosafety standards in the laboratory. I don't know, maybe we will never know.
What I do know is that these events that coincide in time with the Chinese Lunar Year changed our lives forever.
QUARANTINE
Quarantine is a preventive measure against an epidemic in order to prevent and avoid contagion, especially in urban or highly populated areas, it was used as a resource since ancient times in the Roman Empire, the objective is to reduce both the spread of the disease as the death of the population. Forty days are supposed to be more than enough to control both the incubation period and the development and contagion of the disease.
In Argentina, for unknown reasons, the quarantine extends beyond 100 days and there is no security of returning to normal life, but of releasing some activities dividing the time into phases 1,2,3,4, and 5 respectively.
The quarantine requirements are to suspend non-essential commercial activities, physical and NON-SOCIAL distancing (We never stop being Social), use of a chinstrap or mask, wash hands frequently, avoiding taking them to the mouth, eyes and nose area, restricting the circulation, avoid crowds, etc. In addition to taking extreme hygiene measures in the handling of food and the care of clothes and the house.
At the beginning, the picture presented with cough, fever, muscle pain, gastrointestinal discomfort, conjunctivitis, dermatitis, skin inflammation, itching, loss of smell and taste and several others such as irritability, seizures, neurological symptoms, such as dizziness were added. or loss of orientation, so that today everything is covid19 or coronavirus, etc.
Many of us over the course of the months wonder if, with so much viral circulation with few tests, what percentage of us would have been infected, because if there is something that has become clear to us, it is that:
The fatality rate is low, reaching 2.3 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Not all cases lead to ventilator-assisted respiration.
When consulted with doctors from different specialties, they all agree that having been exposed with precautions, all of us to date have a significant viral load and therefore the necessary ANTIBODIES. Although I never heard this information by any means.
After all, every day of collection of pensions and pensions, the agglomeration is inevitable, but with the necessary precautions the Herd Immunity is made, according to a doctor explained to me.
If, when there are previous diseases, care must be greater, people over 60 years of age would also enter the risk group, diabetics, hypertensive, obese, asthmatic and anyone who suffers from a disease that has affected their immune system.
The first time I dared to go out into the street I had a very strong impression when I saw the empty sidewalks, when I felt the mask on my face I felt the same anguish that in turn was also reflected in the eyes of other people who looked at me. me with the same sadness.
How does it affect our emotions?
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The disease and all the communications we receive through the media, far from giving us peace of mind, have activated fear and confusion. At first this disease was minimized, but after a few days it became the most lethal PLAGUE on the face of the earth.
The group of infectologists advising the president did not help to give us a coherent explanation of why in the face of a disease whose fatality is so low and with so many successful treatment options such as hydroxychloroquine, the serum of recovered patients, dexamethasone, retrovirals, anti-inflammatories , etc. We must remain confined without being able to work normally (since the economic situation is really very worrying), requesting permits to go out, study, be with our family friends and walk through our neighborhoods.
An ancestral fear, THE FEAR OF DEATH, has been created for us daily through the news and especially images of graves.
I confess that this was the first year of my life in which I really wondered if I could end it or save myself from contagion, I felt a lot of fear, a lot of confusion, but being an avid researcher I began to ask Spanish and Italian doctors for advice, social networks, testimonies of trustworthy people, who naturally counted on how they were living it.
From that day on, I decided to seek sources of information from responsible people and stay away from the news and catastrophic speeches.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO REDUCE FEAR TO A MINIMUM EXPRESSION
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Otherwise, this can be a trigger for other underlying or ongoing diseases, the onset of anxiety disorders, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorders, and exacerbate various conditions.
FEAR is one of the basic emotions that come in our baggage, but we must learn to control it, since it was there to alert our ancestors to the presence of a predator, making them wiser and more effective when hunting and protecting animals. the family. A dose of it will always be necessary to protect life, but we must control it otherwise it will control us and there we are facing another problem.
One of the greatest challenges we face and is a cause of great suffering is uncertainty:
We do not know if this quarantine will be the last
Many of us have had to quit our jobs and we won't know if we can continue them.
Many have suffered a family loss either as a result of covid19 or due to another illness and have not been able to say goodbye.
So if or if we must do a DUEL process, which I will write about soon. For now I invite you to try to follow these tips despite everything.
10 TIPS TO TRANSIT A QUARANTINE
- Get away from Yellow and Catastrophic News.
- Eating correctly as far as possible incorporating new foods
- Drink plenty of water and take a few minutes to receive Sunlight
-Don't believe all the news or the figures, as they are politically manipulated and the only thing they will do is increase your fear.
- Make a list of 3 priorities that you need and can solve during the quarantine.
- Stay connected with family and friends through networks, video calls, skype.
- Do not be afraid to ask your children or grandchildren for help to update themselves in cell phone and computer use.
- Make yourself a space of silence for Prayer, Yoga, Relaxation or an activity that brings you calm.
- If you can and are encouraged, walk regularly but choose the daytime hours since we are in winters, bundle up, go to known places.
- Connect with some activity that due to lack of time you have not been able to do, gardening, painting, music, learning a language, knitting, today in the absence of teachers, there are tutorials on YouTube to learn everything.
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Think that we are not alone, but united to a Universal Consciousness, that we will walk this difficult path and we will be stronger, wiser, more prudent, more supportive.
Ask for professional help without fear or prejudice since all this is a TRAUMA, it is thus defined to an event that bursts into life, that is why post-traumatic stress will ensue later.
Remember that you will surely have overcome many difficulties and will be able to handle this one too.
We will have a lot to tell our children and grandchildren about this experience.
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Lic. María Fernanda Barrionuevo
Psychologist
@ Maferba6