General PTSD and fear of coronavirus

[lostforgottensoul]

I have been diagnosed with Thyroid cancer and still have difficulty breathing since the removal of my thyroid in Oct. But, the worry is really getting sick in general. There is a guy that sits next to me at work that coughs all day long and that worries me. But its sort of the same worry as getting sick in general. Though maybe a bit more worried and anxiety about it then if it wasn't around. Customers call with their tv blaring about it and that doesn't help.

 

[mamachick]

I am getting quite worried about it. I have COPD and any attack of bronchitis creates further permanent damage. So I know I am high risk for poor outcome, be it death or ending up on oxygen for life. Im also worried as my 8 week old grandson is starting daycare next week. I just dont think they know enough about it. I heard healthy children did not have a high risk of fatality but I still worry. I think it is also because of a handful of serious other problems going on in my life at the moment. So this just tops things off. We also have no insurance at the moment.

 

[Never_falter2]

??It turned out that my vet was right about it. He feels very guilty because he could not make people believe him when he said just this was coming to us.

In Germany most federal states have closed the schools and day cares now. I will be watching six kids from Wednesday on (my own kids plus the two kids of the neighbors). I will try to teach my son and the two other kids at home now. While schools are closed our federal state made clear that this is no vacation and they have to learn anyway. But do far I have not been provided with teaching materials.
All large gatherings have been banned. Our chancellor has asked people to stay at home this weekend. All large gatherings have been banned. Some federal states even ordered all restaurants, bars, gyms and so on to close.
My vets employer ordered my Vet to work from home because he had a bit high blood pressure and his blood sugar is not okay. Everybody in his company who has the slightest health challenge and everybody older than 60 is ordered to work from home and they are told that this is not a suggestion but an order. It is even believed that soon, in a few weeks, everybody in their company will work from home. They are preparing for that and fortunately it is possible in their case.

PLEASE START PREPPING NOW. There is panic buying and shortages of some foods now. Things that are in shortage where we live:

Bread
Noodles
Rice
Potatoes
Long Life Milk
Milk Powder
Sugar
Flour
Salt
Tinned food, including tinned vegetables and tinned fruits
Dried Lentils
Dried peas
Soap
Toilet Paper
Laundry Detergent
Tooth paste

Maybe they will have some or many of those again on Monday but on Saturday it was not possible to buy any of those things shortly after the shops had opened.
There also has been fights about food and toilet paper. I think it is wise to stockpile now before that comes to you. It also eases the burden on the system and is a pro social thing to do.

It is also not possible to buy disinfectives or face masks for many weeks now and ethanol (needed to make your own disinfectives) is on short supply.
However it is still possible to make your own disinfective wipes. The WHO has several recipes for that.

Please be prepared, think what you are going to do if this comes to you.

@brat17 I am sorry to hear. I am not in a risk group but I hereby promise to act any bit as careful as if I was high risk to stop the spread of the virus so that vulnerable (I hope that doesn’t include you because of your blood sugar @Sweetpea76 and my Vet) do not get it.
I think it is very important for you to prep @brat17 so that you do not have to leave the house often. From what I heard - I am not a medical doctor - children are not at high risk of bad outcome from corona virus. There are some children in the ICUs in my country nevertheless but it is a minority. However children may shed the virus and infect others without showing symptoms. In fact children shed the virus longer then grownups.

 

[joeylittle]

It is also not possible to buy disinfectives or face masks for many weeks now and ethanol (needed to make your own disinfectives) is on short supply.

Soap and water is completely sufficient for hands, faces, etc. If you are concerned about protecting your hands from surfaces when you go out, consider wearing gloves.

 

[Never_falter2]

Where I am from they say it is important to disinfect your cell phone, door knobs, light switches and so on often - but don’t worry we have disinfectant.
Soap and latex gloves are sold out now too by the way. But again don’t worry, we bought a stash weeks ago.

Thats why I say start prepping now. It is a pro social thing to do. Companies can see that there is a rising demand and ramp up production and there will be more for everybody.

 

[MainerMikeBrown]

The way I'm coping with the coronavirus issue is by watching the news some so I can be informed and stay safe, but not watch too much of the news and getting worried and real nervous about it as a result.

And because of this happy medium, I'm not feeling panicky or anything like that.

 

[Never_falter2]

I am writing from Germany. I am not sure what is really happening in countries outside the European Union. So sorry if I am telling you something already useless to you - but here in Germany (and also in other countries of the European Union) we totally underestimated how bad this is.
Only a few weeks ago our national broadcasting companies told us there was no need to worry or change our lives, that we just needed to wash our hands more. Now they are telling us that we should not even leave the house unless we had to. Our chancellor was on TV last night, basically said that we are killing our compatriots if we leave the house if we don’t have to.
A few weeks ago they said it was just like the flu and that children had only mild illness. Now there are toddlers in the ICU.

Only one week ago they told us we had the duty to send our children to school, now policies arresting people for letting their children use the playground in some federal states (in others playgrounds are still open, makes no sense).

My husband went shopping on Saturday. A lot of things were sold out (see above). He went ago on Monday - even worse. He wanted to get some fresh fruits because we have children (ours and that of others which we also have in the house now, see above) to feed and because he wanted to go shopping for our elderly neighbors. He couldn’t get the product he wanted, had to buy whats left.
A guy yelled at him and called him a panic buyer (because he had many things in the cart as result of buying for many people) and tried to beat him and while my vet avoided the blow he is still shocked from that.

The hired security for many shops now because customer have become so aggressive.

Some people are totally panicking while others still have picnics in the park. Makes no sense.

We will be running out of fresh fruit again soon. My husband does not want us to go shopping again.
In fact he is not planing to leave the house for months. That plan sounds idiotic to me we are preppers but haven’t fresh fruits or vegetables.

Dont know what to do?

 

[Friday]

In fact he is not planing to leave the house for months. That plan sounds idiotic to me we are preppers but haven’t fresh fruits or vegetables

1. Bean sprouts, & radish sprouts, & pea shoots.

Bean sprouts are the fastest, they sprout in about a day. Radish & peas take a couple days.

2. Window garden for fresh herbs, & peas, & cherry tomatoes. Bean towers can work, too, if you’ve got tall windows. Closet “garden” for mushrooms. (If you have a high pressure sodium or halide light for indoor growing, almost anything can be grown indoors :D But the sunshine from windows, indoor heating, and good soil? Will grow a lot. ) In my loft I also had dwarf lemon trees in front of 2 southern facing windows. Smells looooooovely, grows to about 4 feet tall. Produced lemons like crazy, as long as I used a paint brush to polinate the flowers. Same for cherry tomatoes. (No bees indoors!) <<< Growing things indoors? Is also a fun project for the kids.

 

[Sweetpea76]

Well that escalated quickly!

I’m off work for 3 weeks, possibly longer. My kids are online at their Universities. Public schools are closed. We have confirmed cases in my state now. Restaurants are take-out only. Bars, salons, tattoo parlors and many other businesses are closed. Sporting events, concerts and public gatherings are cancelled.

People are panic buying at the stores... which is stupid. Even if we quarantine the groceries and pharmacies will still be open. God help you if you need toilet paper!

At this point in time I’d say I’m still not afraid or panicky. I’m concerned, but still pretty calm. My freezer and pantry was already full. I bulk-buy paper products and cleaning supplies anyway so we already had a stock. I wiped down shopping cart handles and used hand sanitizer before it was cool, so it’s not a scary change for me. I’m not worried about gloves or masks at all.

I’m an organizer by nature, so I’m shopping and running errands for several elderly relatives and friends. Keeping busy, being cautious, but not panicking.

My main concern is probably financial right now. I still have some paychecks coming, and I qualify for unemployment so I’ll scrape by, but it’s gonna suck for awhile. As far as the virus is concerned, I’m pretty sure we’re going to get it anyway. My daughter is a cashier at a large grocery so she is interacting with probably a thousand panic shoppers a day now. I worked with large amounts of people in different locations, so I’ve probably been exposed too. Hopefully we do alright... everybody in the household is young and healthy. I’m probably the most vulnerable because I’m diabetic, but it’s very controlled and has been for years. I think that puts me at about the same risk as “normal” people. We have OTC meds in the house just in case.

Vet is doing great. He hates people anyway so staying in doesn’t bother him. He’s actually kind of enjoying himself... he finds panicky “stupid” people entertaining in some twisted way, and he’s joking about the purge, apocalypse and/or the boogaloo. After what he’s been through this does not scare him. He said he waded through the sewage outflows behind many an Iraqi house, so he is immune to everything. He has beer, weed, and smokes so he’s good. He is oddly calm, and that’s OK with me.

 

[Mach123]

Nobody really knows. I don't believe what they are telling us or not all of it. I have no fear beyond what I've always felt. I'm anxious but not beyond what I've always felt. My symptoms, c-ptsd symptoms, are manageable right now.

I was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year. It seemed like that was going in a certain direction and now it seems like everything is stopped. I had an MRI last week but it was not in a hospital. I doubt they'd do the biopsy now, but IDK.

So we wait and see even though waiting could be hazardous in my case. But no I'm not afraid. I believe in God and at the end of the day it helps. It's at times like this when I really feel how scared I'd be if I didn't. The old saying is, there are no athiests in foxholes. Probably not completely true? Understandable though.

But no one is completely immune from fear or it's rare. You just have to find ways around it?

 

[dulcia]

We are working from home in Texas, too. Today at midnight they close the gyms ? Hopefully the rain stops soon so we can hang outside again. Agree that there is no need to panic, but constantly seeing this in the news and on social media is definitely adding to the usual anxiety. I hope everyone's relationships are doing okay if you're having to self-isolate or quarantine with your partner!

 

[Sweetpea76]

No kidding @dulcia! I may need to hit the liquor store myself! Idk what it is about disasters, but my vet seems more comfortable now than he usually is lol. Hopefully he keeps his good mood while we’re all hunkered down. If not the coronavirus will be the least of my problems.