Social Distancing
Limited physical access to the outside world. Hand sanitizer. Six feet of space between people. Hand washing. No school. No work. No visitors to your home. No visitors to your hospital room. No dining in restaurants. Take out only. Masks. Gloves. Cancellations.
To many, this is all shocking and unfathomable. To those suffering through cancer treatments and organ transplants, this is life. This whole social distancing thing is a shock to our systems. Humans are social by nature. They thrive in the company of others, need physical interactions. The entire population is getting a taste of what the immunocompromised community faces daily.
For most of us, it has been about a week since we’ve been in “lockdown”. For a week we have been home with our immediate family, eating our meals at home, working virtually, using resources available to “teach” our children, and trying to navigate this new, shocking reality.
No sports on the fields, no sports on TV. We are so grateful for the TB12 decision, only because it gives us something to talk about. We, Patriots Nation, will miss him, but we really needed the distraction, thanks Tom. Our kids, who are so overly scheduled now have nothing. This pandemic is causing us to be creative at home.
Again, welcome to the immunocompromised world. What you are experiencing now, is life for the immunocompromised. With luck and science, hopefully you can get back to some normalcy in a few weeks. For the immunocompromised, it can be months and sometimes years. You are a week in and going stir crazy. Imagine you are six months in, without an outing? Imagine what you are experiencing right now, it lasts for a year. Not only that, but everyone else, your friends, extended family, are back to living a normal life. You. You are stuck, frozen in this isolating reality. You are watching friends gather. You are hearing stories of that great party you could not take part in, the fabulous new restaurant you can not go to, the wedding you were supposed to be in, but sadly could not even attend.
You, the general population, are receiving a taste. A taste of what life is like for an unnoticed segment of our population--- the immunocompromised population. So, while you are practicing social distancing, be grateful. Be grateful that you are not alone in your isolation. Be grateful that the entire population is going through the exact same thing. Be grateful that you are not missing gatherings, because no one is gathering. Be grateful that it is likely temporary, and you can resume your regular activities soon.
When this crisis is over, please remember how it felt. Please remember how frustrating it was to be stuck home. Please remember how much you missed physical interactions and social get-togethers. Please remember that although your work colleagues may drive you crazy, you actually enjoy going to work. Please remember that your child’s teacher is amazing. Please remember that there is a portion of our population that cannot go back to normal. Remember that there are countless men, women and children who are forced to remain secluded from the outside world. They did nothing wrong. This isolation is due to treatment for terrible diseases. Men, women and children who must constantly wash their hands, must stay six feet away from people, can’t dine in restaurants, must wear masks in public, can’t have visitors in their homes and have a best friend in hand sanitizer.
Social distancing is not new, it is just new to you.