CORONAVIRUS

Should I Worry About Getting COVID-19?

When do we really know when we should be worried about the Coronavirus

In these uncertain times of the Coronavirus, we are seeing uncertainty in our country not seen since the times of the great depression.

Visting friends, family and loved ones is frowned upon, that is if you can do it at all.

We’ve seen that our business meetings have moved from the board room to the Zoom room.

We have seen our personal wealth take a hit from being laid off, furloughed, or unemployed.

I wouldn’t say that we are scared as a country, but these are definitely uncertain times.

Something that I find myself thinking about more often especially since we’ve started to go back to work is could I get COVID-19? Could I get it even now?

Myself, I have been very careful about contact with others and not taking any chances of possibly being exposed to the virus.

I don’t think I’ve actually gone to the grocery store since March 20th. How am I feeding myself you ask?

For me, I have discovered the wild world of having groceries delivered from my neighborhood, Kroger.

Since I live in close proximity to Whole Foods and I am a member of Amazon Prime I can get deliveries from there too. No need to take the chance of a trip to the store.

Other than those deliveries I have pretty much stayed to myself.

Honestly, I’ve been very comfortable with only seeing me, myself, and I. I guess in my later years of life I have discovered I like myself OK.

So why am I worried about getting the Coronavirus?

Well, the reason I think about getting COVID-19 is pretty simple. You just don’t know when you might be in contact with it.

I mean for me I’ve been very careful about where I’ve gone and like I said I have not gone to the grocery store and places like that.

I did go to a local bakery to get my favorite, a piece of carrot cake. I thought that might be safe since it was late on a Saturday, and they had the store marked for social distancing.

Yet, while at the bakery the person that was behind me in line suddenly decided to lunge toward me. She didn’t want to wait in line on her spot, rather wanted to stand next to mine.

If my eyes could talk, her ears would be quite full of my thoughts about her actions, and she quickly retreated.

The quarantine has started the lessen, the restraints have started to relax. I like everyone else is slowly venturing back out into the community.

Just this past weekend I met my parents at a local park. It was a gorgeous day, sunlit with a nice breeze. We visited with one another sitting some 12 feet apart.

Walking to and from our grassy meadow in the park, I made sure I had my mask on. They had theirs on too.

As we sat there under the nice spring sunshine we suddenly found ourselves taking our masks off. I guess we thought we were over 12 feet away, that had to be ok? Yes, we were screaming at one another, but it was easier than wearing masks.

Yes, we were probably doing the right thing. And for the longest time, we were having a really super visit. But then things changed and now I’m wondering if it was worth the chance?

It was dinner time when we arrived at the park, and there were many tables, benches, and pathways, not far away. It’s an in-town park, so pretty busy on days like this.

My parents and I picked a spot to sit in our chairs (we brought with us) that would allow us to be away from the paths. Away from the parking lot. Away from the picnic tables, benches, etc. Away from other people.

As we sat there, all that preparation didn’t seem to matter. People kept walking near.

What I found in watching the groups getting ever closer to our group, that they didn’t seem to care.

They saw the surgical masks in our hands, and they saw not only my age but also the ages of my parents. We are all three at higher risk, but that didn’t seem to matter.

I mean I even watched several of the adults in these groups actually noticed the masks, smirk, or smile and then walked right by us anyway.

And when I was sitting there and I was seeing people get close, I asked myself “should I say something”?

I mean I don’t wanna be rude to anybody. Yet my and my parent's health is worth being rude about, right?

I know even on my morning walks I don't take chances. If somebody’s walking toward me on the sidewalk, I jump off into the street as to not walk by them directly. And most, not all people do the same for me if they see me first.

Yet here in a city park where there is plenty of room to avoid one another, people felt compelled to walk right by us.

We were not close to the parking lot, or close to a walkway. These souls were, I won’t say deliberately but somewhat consciously walking right by us. Because they could.

These people who were walking by us at least should be aware of the 6 feet of separation needed. Honestly, I felt like they should’ve been more aware because of my parents being seniors, and me being pretty close to that.

So what does this all have to do with my fear of getting COVID-19? Well, I guess you just never know.

This morning when I was out on my walk, I had already finished 1/2 of the journey and was circling back to finish it out. I started getting a tickle in my throat.

Usually being someone who has allergies that tickle comes ago pretty often and I don’t think anything about it.

Yet this morning the tickle was persistent. It did not want to go away.

Then the tickle started becoming a cough. It started out slowly at first and then started tormenting me.

I would think that the coughing fit was over. I’d take a couple of breaths and then it would come back again.

This frustrating cough went on for about the equivalent of a half a mile of walking or more.

In the end, the cough did end, and as far as I can tell, and now being about an hour later I seem fine.

I guess that I realized this morning that in our new world you just never know when you’re going to be exposed. Could you be exposed to the coronavirus and not even be aware?

What if you are exposed to COVID-19, what do you do about it? I mean yes I know you could be tested, but you can’t do that every day.

So between those times of a tormenting cough, I find myself thinking about whether I should worry about getting COVID-19?

Like I said I’ve been very careful, maybe too cautious but I want to do the right thing.

In the end, I guess the best thing I should do is just be aware.

Yes, we will all have to go about our lives much differently until they find a treatment or a vaccine.

Yet in the interim, despite all our caution, we may still find ourselves being in a situation that could be compromised. We have to be aware of those situations, but we can’t find ourselves being scared.

Like myself this morning. The persistent cough made me worry, and that worrying made me not enjoy my walk quite as much.

My walks in the morning have been getting me through these months of isolation. They have kept me somewhat sane.

Also the press’ unrelenting desire to keep us spooked by this unknown enemy. That hasn’t helped to not make one worry.

Allowing myself to worry about getting the coronavirus, does nobody any good and especially doesn’t help me.

So my question for myself again is, should I worry about getting the coronavirus? My answer to that is no. No need to worry.

Just keep doing what I’ve been doing. Be cautious of my surroundings.

When in doubt step across the road. When concerned, don’t worry, just take some deep breaths, and keep walking.

About Michael

Michael Thacker is a not so young adult blogger, aspiring writer, and sometimes seller of real estate.

Michael tweets a LOT on Twitter posts every once in a while on Facebook and occasionally lets his opinions be known to friends, family, and anyone else that will listen.

Connect with Michael

You can follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MichaelThackerI.

If you want to connect on Facebook, the best place is https://www.facebook.com/RMichaelThacker/