Month: March 2020

The COVID-19 virus is a serious threat to the world’s health. But there are also many issues facing those that remain healthy during the crisis, mainly the psychological effects of social distancing.

Humans are social beings. That’s why we punish people through imprisonment and the reason that socially-isolated people have a higher mortality rate.

So if you’re feeling depressed or distressed during lockdown it’s important to know that it’s normal and there are ways to improve your sense of well-being.

“Isolation, physical distancing, the closure of schools and workplaces are challenges that affect us, and it is natural to feel stress, anxiety, fear and loneliness at this time,” Hans Kulge, the director of the European branch of the World Health Organization said.

“It is essential to address the public mental health of people during the following weeks,” Kluge added.

The stress of isolation can be so debilitating it can be difficult to cope.

Bloomberg journalist Peter Martin has been socially isolated in China without a housemate for two months and his family is overseas. So, as someone who has more than a few weeks of experience being on lockdown, he took to Twitter to share some helpful tips to stay sane.

Rebecca Dolgin of Psycom says there are a few groups that are more likely to have a hard time social distancing, young adults (16 to 24), women, people with a history of psychological illness, healthcare workers, and those who have one child.

Dolgin also says that fear, anxiety, depression, boredom, anger, frustration, and irritability are all common reactions to social isolation. “The further you are from engaging with others and feeling a connection, the more of an impact it will have,” Dr. Adam Kaplin, a neuroscientist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, writes.

Dolgin says that we can maintain our psychological well-being by acknowledging what’s happening and that it is stressful. She also says it’s important to stay in contact with loved ones, even if it’s just through social media and real-time video chat programs such as Facetime.

Like Martin, Dolgin also agrees that we should all manage our news consumption.

“Being informed doesn’t require you to act like you’re a newsroom producer,” Dolgin writes. “It’s okay to set a few times a day where you’ll check in for updates.”

One of the suggestions from the pandemic playbook the National Security Council completed under the Obama administration, which was tossed aside by the Trump administration in favor of other approaches, was having a “single federal spokesperson” to address the American people’s concerns.

Instead, during daily White House press briefings, we’ve been treated to a revolving parade of politicians, cabinet members, medical experts, and even big business CEOs, each of whom all tell us slightly different—or sometimes drastically different—things. One of the primary players is Dr. Anthony Fauci, an infectious disease expert who has advised six presidents. By far the most experienced and knowledgeable of everyone we’ve seen speak on the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Fauci has become a universally respected hero, beloved for his calm but clear explanation of what we are currently facing.

I can’t count how many people I’ve seen lament on social media that we don’t have press briefings just with Dr. Fauci. He’s the voice we want and need, and the White House would be wise to keep him front and center at all times as we battle this outbreak.

Alas, that’s not going to happen, but we now have something even better. Trevor Noah and Dr. Fauci together. I couldn’t dream of a more reassuring combo. Noah interviewed Dr. Fauci and let him answer questions without interrupting him. He asked smart, helpful questions that we all want answers to, like “What makes coronavirus different from other infectious diseases we’ve seen?” and “What are people not understanding from the numbers?” He stayed away from politics, which was wise, and let Dr. Fauci speak to the things he’s an expert in.

If we could just have Trevor Noah represent the press and Dr. Fauci be the single pandemic spokesperson during the daily White House briefings, that would bring a much needed competence and calm to this whole pandemic situation. Can we go ahead and make that happen, please?

Dr. Fauci Answers Trevor’s Questions About Coronavirus | The Daily Social Distancing Show

www.youtube.com

Here in the U.S., we’re a couple of weeks into the strange new reality of coronavirus pandemic lockdown, and we’re all doing our best to adjust. Life as we know it has been completely thrown off, and what we know about this new reality changes by the day.

Good times, right?

We all process information differently, especially during a crisis. Some of us want all the numbers and stats and first-hand stories. Some of us get freaked out by that much detail and just want an overview of what to do. Some avoid the news altogether because it makes us anxious, while others devour every article we can get our hands on because it makes us feel grounded.

Neither way is wrong, but personally, I’m an information junkie. In general, I feel comforted knowing exactly what’s happening and having all of the facts. I never saw this as a problem—until this pandemic hit.

When life was “normal,” I would choose a subject to dive into, drink my fill of info, and move on. When something major happened, I might consume a bit more.

But with the coronavirus pandemic, it’s different. I feel like I’m constantly thirsty for more information, yet being hit with a firehouse of it at the same time. It’s a lot. Too much, really.

Coronavirus and everything that goes along with it is all anyone is talking about right now. It’s all news outlets are reporting on, and that’s probably how it should be. The world is literally on hold, which makes everything unrelated to the pandemic irrelevant, at least for the immediate time being.

We’ve never seen a global pandemic in our lifetimes. And as crises go, it’s kind of weird. Unlike a sudden natural disaster or event like 9/11, this is a slow, continually evolving emergency. It’s required us to take extreme action before it felt necessary. It’s forced us to all get on the same page quickly and then just…wait.

Waiting while being locked down at home is a good way to stay physically healthy, but it’s a mentally dangerous scenario for us information junkies. It’s easy to spend hours a day on the internet, which is currently a 24/7 immersion of coronavirus content and conversation.

Not only are we living in this pandemic, we are consuming it, all day, every day. And there’s no way that can be healthy. It’s going to take its toll on all of us.

Even outside of my work as a writer, where I’m immersed in media all day long, I find it hard to pull away from the news. I can feel it wearing on me, but I also feel like I have a moral duty to pay rapt attention to it. I feel like I owe it to the people on the front lines to know what they’re dealing with, like I can’t just turn a blind eye to the people who are suffering through this more than I am, like I should at least watch the ship go down if I can’t do anything to stop it.

But that right there—the truth that we can’t do anything more than what we’re already doing—is the key to letting go of the need to constantly stay informed. I’m already holed up at home. I’m already social distancing. I’m already practicing good hand hygiene. I’m already following all of the directives from local, state, and federal authorities. If my devouring news could actually save a life, it would be justified. But it can’t.

And this is a long game—likely a very long game. For the sake of our mental and emotional health, we have to disconnect from all of this sometimes. Even us info junkies. Nothing is healthy in excess, and right now it’s far too easy to be excessive with our information load. And that’s only going to get worse as more cases are confirmed, more areas get hit hard, and more people we know and love are affected.

So our family has decided that one day per week we will have a coronavirus-free day. No news. No stat checking. No looking at Twitter or Facebook, even briefly. One day to shut it all off. One day to do anything and everything except watch, read, or talk about anything having to do with coronavirus. At least for as long as we can.

Disconnecting won’t make any of this go away, obviously, and we still have the constant reminder of not being able to go places we’d normally go and see people we’d normally see. But at least we can step out of the information firehose and take a much-needed deep breath once a week.

It’s okay to take a break from the news, from the stats, from the stories, and from the coronavirus in general. Give yourself permission to step away from it.

I promise, it’ll still be here tomorrow.

This story was originally shared on #EqualEverywhere — a campaign to champion the changemakers working to make equality for girls and women a reality. You can find the original story here.

Priyanka Jaishinghani is a social entrepreneur, journalist, and advocate with a passion for making an impact. As the co-founder of a global mentorship program, GirlzFTW, she works to connect high school and college girls to inspiring mentors. Priyanka is also driving impact through her work as Managing Editor of Conscious Magazine and as a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers community.

What does #EqualEverywhere mean to you?

#EqualEverywhere means closing the gender gap so women have access to equal opportunities.

Why do you advocate for equal rights for girls and women?

Almost 1 billion girls and young women lack the skills they need to succeed in a rapidly changing labor market. Women remain underrepresented in leadership and management positions both publicly and privately. According to Women, Business and the Law, globally, there are only six countries that give girls the same working rights as men. In addition, only 5% of women hold CEO positions across leading Fortune 500 companies.

These daunting statistics make me want to balance the playing field by investing in women across the globe.

What motivates you to do this work?

Growing up, I lived in the United Arab Emirates, Mexico, India, and the U.S., where I realized that girls and women needed more real life mentors. Indeed, irrespective of geography, girls face similar issues worldwide. My conviction that it is up to us to tackle adverse norms and promote positive role models motivated me to co-create GirlzFTW in 2017 (FTW stands for For The Win). It is gratifying that today, I’m building those very resources and platforms that I wish I had when I was younger.

GirlzFTW made it possible for 16 mentees hailing from India, Canada, and the U.S. to connect with inspiring and powerful mentors to help achieve their goals. Currently, girls participating in our network represent over 70 countries — from Ethiopia to Bangladesh.

What are the main challenges you experience in your work to advance gender equality?

As a global program, GirlzFTW encounters many types of gender inequality and provides a platform through which girls can share their stories. On the one hand, some countries have jumped miles ahead by introducing progressive laws and more tolerant societal norms. On the other hand, women in far too many countries must fight hard to even obtain a seat at the table.

A key lesson I have learned is that the first step toward narrowing the inequality gap is to instill confidence among women and girls by equipping them with the skills they need to speak up for themselves. Strengthening their voices requires concerted effort and deliberate networking.

What progress are you seeing as a result of your work?

Through global mentorship, GirlzFTW is channeling the magic of women every day. We do this by connecting girls in high school and college to inspirational and amazing women from diverse fields, industries, and backgrounds.

In 2019, we hosted the first ‘The Girlz, RTW (Run the World) Conference’, held as a collaboration between The World With MNR, Trinity College, and GirlzFTW. The event provided girls at the University of Toronto access to training, empowerment, career development advice, and mentorship. Over 100 girls came together to connect and network with like-minded female leaders.

What progress are you seeing in the wider gender equality movement?

Technology and a range of social media platforms are allowing us to amplify our voices beyond the usual advocacy communities that we naturally connect with. We’ve seen how a single tweet or video can spark a larger movement and create a multiplier effect.

While we have a lot of work ahead of us, women are rising and demanding a seat at the table — whether in politics, board rooms, or in the workplace. It is especially encouraging to see more diverse groups coming together in ways that allow decisions for women to be made by women.

Want to inject a little joy into your day?

Meet Kobe, the tiniest chef you’ve ever seen, and perhaps the most adorable.

Our audience on Instagram is loving this TikTok video of Kobe making a fancy dinner of asparagus, macaroni and cheese, and grilled steak. So. Stinking. Cute.

Can you even stand it?

Kobe has his own Instagram account, where his parents share his culinary adventures, and each video is cuter than the last. The little dude can’t even talk yet, but he clearly enjoys cooking. He makes it look so fun and satisfying, it almost makes me want to cook. And I hate cooking.

The little red chef’s had just puts the adorableness over the top, doesn’t it? And there’s just something about those tiny little sausage fingers grabbing chopped up veggies and tossing them into a pan.

I do catch myself worrying that he’s going to accidentally touch a pan and burn himself, but mom and dad appear to have it under control. And kudos to them for including Kobe in their daily doings. That’s how wee ones learn best.

Mom and dad also have to have enormous patience and flexibility to make this happen. After all, a baby isn’t going to measure things out perfectly, and sometimes he’s going to put things where they don’t belong. But again, this is how kids learn, and it’s a joy to watch.

Bon appetit, Kobe! Thanks for keeping us entertained while we’re holed up at home.

One of the best things about human beings is that we can still find humor in the midst of a crisis. In fact, humor becomes even more important during tough times, since joy and laughter can help connect us and keep us calm.

Since our normal entertainment venues are a bit hampered at the moment, people are fishing in the collective archives and pulling out tidbits of timeless hilarity. One clip that’s currently making the rounds is a rap video from the “Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” from 2014. Can you picture NBC’s buttoned-up news anchors Brian Williams and Lester Holt performing Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” together? (Or rapping anything at all?)

Prepare to be amazed by what you’re about to witness. Whoever was behind the editing of this brilliant piece deserves an Oscar. Seriously.

Enjoy:

Rapper’s Delight – Brian Williams

www.youtube.com

And if you want a few more laughs, check out this interview Fallon did with Brian Williams after his rapping video went viral. Who’d have guessed Williams had such a dry wit?! (Seriously, how did I miss this the first time around? So funny.)

Brian Williams Addresses His Rapping — Part 1

www.youtube.com

Brian Williams Addresses His Rapping — Part 2

www.youtube.com

“Scooby Doo” and “Scream” actor Matthew Lillard shared a touching video on Twitter of his neighbors throwing a surprise parade for Coco, a girl who just underwent her final chemotherapy treatment.

“People may need some goodness right now,” the 50-year-old actor said in the tweet.

Even though the community was on lockdown for the coronavirus they still came out and supported Coco from their cars and in front of their homes.

And mission accomplished, Matthew Lillard. This is just what the Internet needed right now. Coco’s mom even chimed in, offering to help others going through similar situations with their families right now:

One of the biggest obstacles to fighting COVID-19 in just about every country is the lack of ventilators. Patients with severe cases suffer from inflammation and a build-up of fluid in the lungs. This makes breathing and oxygenating the blood nearly impossible without a ventilator.

As COVID-19 cases rise in Canada, the medical community fears the country’s largest province, Ontario, could run out of ventilators very soon.

“What our modeling is showing is that if we cannot keep these interventions in place … we’re going to run out of capacity really, really quickly — likely in the next two weeks,” Beate Sander, a scientist who has been modeling the pandemic’s impact on Ontario’s health-care system, told the CBC.

The province is working to come up with more but it still may not be enough.

“We’ve procured 300 more ventilators to add to the 210 we currently have in surplus,” Ontario health minister, Christine Elliott’s spokesperson, told the CBC. “We continue to work on procuring additional ventilators.”

If hospitals run short on ventilation equipment, they may be forced to make the dreadful decision between who dies and who is saved.

To get the most out of the ventilators at his hospital, Dr. Alain Gauthier, an anesthetist at the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital in Ontario, rigged one of the ventilators so it could serve up to nine people.

The hack was shared online by a fellow physician, who called him an “evil genius.”

According to the CBC, the rigged ventilator will only work with patients that have similar lung capacities. Multiple hoses are attached to the machine so it is running several times its normal power.

“At one point we may not have other options,” Gauthier told CBC News. “‘The option could be well, we let people die or we give that a chance.”

via Alan Drummond

Gauthier came up with the idea after seeing a 2006 video on YouTube. He says the idea has been tried once before, after the mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017.

The hack was so impressive it even caught the attention of Elon Musk who tweeted, “Interesting thread.”

Engineers in Italy earned similar attention this week for hacking scuba gear and turning it into a ventilator mask. Italy is the country second hardest-hit by the virus and is having its own troubles with equipment shortages.

In just three hours, Cristian Fracassi and Alessandro Romaioli, engineers at Isinnova, created a prototype for a 3-D printed valve that successfully converts the scuba gear into a ventilator mask.

The mask tested successfully in an Italian hospital so the engineers have made the 3-D valve plans available to everyone for free.

The coronavirus has been a terrible scourge on humanity, but there will be some positives that come from the pandemic. Tragic events like this one push people to improvise and innovate new solutions that may help humanity in the future.

via Reddit

The elderly have the most to worry about during the COVID-19 pandemic. If infected by the virus they have the highest mortality rate. So, obviously, they have a big reason to stay home and practice social distancing during the crisis.

Teenagers have a much lower risk of dying from the COVID-19, and in California, high school isn’t in session for weeks, if not months.

So Daniel Goldberg, a junior student-athlete at San Marcos High in Santa Barbara put two and two together and got his friends together to help the elderly.

Daniel created Zoomers to Boomers, a website where seniors in the Santa Barbara area can fill out a list online and have their groceries delivered the next day by one of his high school friends.

The site’s name is a generational play on words, the delivery people are all Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) and the recipients are mostly Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964).

via Zoomers to Boomers

“The first week off school I was just spending time with siblings, and I was trying to follow all the regulations of isolate at home, don’t go out and spread anything around,” Daniel told Santa Barbara’s Noozhawk.

“I felt I wasn’t helping when there was help that was needed,” he added.

Daniel was inspired to create the website because of his father, an ER doctor at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

“I saw my dad (Dr. Brian Goldberg) going into work at the ER every day and he was putting himself out on the front line,” Daniel said. “I was just sitting at home twiddling my thumbs. I was like: ‘There has to be something I can do to try help out in the community.’ I started thinking and brainstorming on how I can help.”

By Tuesday, Daniel had put together a staff of 13 high school kids to do the zooming. Many of them are fellow athletes at his school. The Zoomers must adhere to strict standards of sanitation and wear an N95 mask and gloves.

“All these people are people I’m comfortable asking, ‘Do you want to help?'” he said. “They’re friends from school and water polo, people I know.”

The great thing for seniors is that Zoomers to Boomers is free. The Zoomers don’t accept any payment for their orders and tips are donated to those in need in Santa Barbara county.

The project has been so successful it’s already spread to Denver, Colorado.

The site is simple to use. Customers click an “order here” tab to create a grocery list. Then drivers visit a local grocery store and fulfill the order. After the items have been purchased, the delivery person calls or texts the customer and tells them how much it cost and when it will be delivered.

Customers can pay through cash, check, or Venmo.

“They answer all the information we need and we send a driver out and we’ll have (the grocery) order to them by the next morning,” Daniel said. “For the non-tech savvy, they can send me an email. I can call a couple of people and make the delivery.”

Business is taking off quickly. On Tuesday, Daniel’s team fulfilled 50 orders, so he’s looking to hire more Zoomers.

“I’m going to try to grow the team a little more,” he said.

The war with COVID-19 has arrived on our soil, and those on the front lines are being sent into battle without enough armor or armaments.

We’ve spent weeks watching hard-hit nations struggle under overwhelming conditions—countries like Italy, which has more hospital beds and more doctors per capita than the U.S.—having to make heartbreaking decisions about which patients will get ventilators and which patients will die.

The picture of what happens when healthcare systems—even developed, well-managed systems—get hit with more critically ill patients than they have room or equipment for, is stark. And that reality has just begun to play out in the U.S.. Not enough personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep healthcare workers from contracting the virus they’re surrounded by in the hospital. Not enough ventilators to meet the swelling demand.

Heroic doctors and nurses on the front line are beginning to give us all a glimpse of what this battle looks like. ER doctor Colleen Smith in Elmhurst, Queens, shared with the New York Times what is happening inside her hospital, where 13 patients died of COVID-19 in one day. The hospital has had to place a refrigerated truck outside to hold the deceased bodies. She says their ER patient load has more than doubled in recent days, and those numbers are likely to increase.

“Leaders in various offices, from the president to the head of Health and Hospitals ,saying things like, ‘We’re going to be fine. Everything’s fine.’ And from our perspective, everything is not fine,” Dr. Smith told the Times. “I don’t have the support that I need, and even just the materials that I need, physically, to take care of my patients.”

Another doctor called what’s happening in the hospital “apocalyptic.” Hearing Dr. Smith detail the overwhelming anxiety and daunting reality at the very beginning of the expected surge in cases should make us all realize the seriousness of what we’re facing and understand why flattening the curve is so important.