I was very active with this on Facebook. So much so that AARDA, The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, Inc. sent me a nice little notification saying I had shared the most for that week.
Nani!?
I didn't think too much of it. I don't do this blog or Facebook for money, clicks, or likes. Many of my friends know someone with an autoimmune disease other than I and I just wanted to share as much information from every credible source I could find. Most people had no idea how it would affect the chronically ill and the information was conflicting. No one was really thinking about us and it kinda annoyed me.
One report said "It's like the flu." Another report said, "You'll be fine." Then we start hearing, "The elderly, immunocompromised, and children need to be concerned." Then we added pregnant women. All the while, those not in the at risk groups were going on about their lives like it didn't matter and possibly spreading this thing by not practicing sanitizing of hands and social distancing.
As we saw by the college spring breakers in Florida, many people think this is a joke and that the government is over reacting. After seeing the pictures and videos from overseas, I say the government didn't act fast enough. If we can prevent even half of what's happened abroad, then it's worth it.
So What Does Covid-19 Do?
There are dozens of articles and infographics on this. In a nutshell, it gets into the lungs and causes inflammation. It can lead to pneumonia. The immune system tries to attack it but ends up attacking everything in sight. It can lead to respiratory distress. Here is an article posted on AARDA by Dr. Betty Diamond of AARDA's Scientific Advisory Board.
This video by Science Insider on YouTube is the best illustration for the disease and its progression.
What Treatments Are There?
I've read an article that says they are looking into using anti-malarials such as Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin to treat this.Pause.
Both of these are drugs used in the treatment of Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and other diseases. They suppress the immune response and reduce inflammation.
They are also working on a vaccine and trials for that began a week ago or so from the date of this posting. For more information, check out the article written by the FDA here.
So what do we do?
Precautions
The following precautions come directly from the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation's website.- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if soap and water are not available. Please see the CDC’s Handwashing Information for more information.
-
Avoid contact with people who are sick.
-
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
-
Stay home when you are sick.
-
Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
-
Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
-
Facemasks should be used by people who show symptoms of COVID-19 to reduce the spread of the disease to others.
-
Avoid travel to places where COVID-19 has occurred.
I, personally, will wear a mask when I go out. I catch colds faster than most and I'm not taking any chances. Some protection is better than NONE. The media has shown us that people don't listen and they could be infected and unknowingly be spreading it.
This thing could go on for months. I think we need to just accept that and plan accordingly. I'll be posting a few articles in the next few days on what those of us with chronic illness and tight budgets can do to prepare ourselves and our families the best we can.
In the meantime we should stay calm, be kind, and use our heads. Stressing out is no good.
Until next post.
