How to deal with COVID-19 health issues

How to deal with COVID-19 health issues.... 

So glad sister Barb, one of our nurses here at SMC, was willing to offer some Godly wisdom on the topic that is on all of our minds these days. This was for an interview I did for our YouTube channel. The talk itself expanded a little more than what is here so for the full talk go here:

https://youtu.be/iBsfJ3y2Bcs

What are the facts that we need to know about COVID 19?

There are a lot of different directions I could go with this answer. Daily we hear an abundance of information that can be difficult to absorb. I hear many different reactions from confusion, to panic, to fear, anger, disappointment and apathy.

Coronaviruses have been around for a long time and there are many different types.  What makes this one different and difficult, is that it is a new strain. A strain that we don’t have immunity to.  When no one has immunity, it spreads quickly.  We live in a society where we like the quick answer and fast treatment. What makes it difficult is that there is no vaccine to prevent it or medicine to treat it.

Since we do not have the treatment we would like, we have to rely on other measures to keep it from spreading so quickly. These measures are what are uncomfortable for us because it creates uncertainty and chaos in our lives. We do not like the isolation, social distancing and our way of life as we know it has been shut down.  It’s hard to look at the big picture when instead you are looking at how your personal life has been disrupted.

Even though we don’t like the measures, those measure will be what gets us back quicker to a normal routine.  We keep hearing the phrase “flatten the curve”. The cases of corona keep climbing so that is why we need to flatten the curve – in other words slow it down. We need to slow it down for multiple reasons but the main one is for our medical teams, hospitals and doctor’s offices to be able to handle the volume of patients that are coming through the system. 

  There are a limited amount of supplies and equipment, especially personal protective equipment like masks, gloves and gowns. Our health professionals taking care of sick people on the front line need to stay healthy themselves to care for others. There will be a need for hospital beds and ventilators. This is above and beyond what is regularly coming through the hospitals like heart attacks, strokes, accidents, and influenza.  We have to slow it down to be able to handle the volume so that proper medical care can be provided.

What can I do to be safe?

I can list 5 things to do to keep safe:

-Wash your hands, wash your hands, wash your hands, keep your hands away from your face and if I didn’t already say it – wash your hands!

All joking aside washing your hands is key. Use soap and water if available and if not, hand sanitizer that is 65-70 % alcohol. If you are washing your hands in a public restroom turn the faucet off with the paper towel and open the exit door handle with the paper towel. When you wash your hands make sure you wash between your fingers and all surfaces of your hands.

You have heard to wash your hands for 20 seconds. There are several ways to time that – sing the ABC song or happy birthday song through twice. Or one you may not have heard of is saying the Lord’s prayer. Now that is a great prayer to pray multiple times during the day!

-As I said keep your hands away from your face. The virus can enter your body through your mouth, nose and eyes.

If you need to sneeze or cough, do it in a tissue or in your elbow and then go wash your hands. The virus is spread by respiratory droplets but also on surfaces. Wash your hands after touching any frequently used surface, and also disinfect those items.

-Social distancing – another popular phrase right now. You should stay 6 feet apart. When you sneeze or cough your droplets can go that far.

- Stay home! If you do not have to work outside of the home then stay home. Yes we do have to get groceries and essential items but only one person should go from the household – do not take your children with you. If you are older or with any underlying health condition you should not be out. There are many people that can shop for you and place your items at your door. Obviously if you are sick with any symptoms you need to stay home.

How does someone recover if they have the corona virus?

The symptoms of COVID 19 can be mild to fatal. If you have mild symptoms you may stay at home and monitor your fever, drink plenty of fluids, get lots of rest, isolate yourself and wear a mask.  If at any time you have more difficulty breathing, have chest pressure or feel that you need emergency care you need to go to the hospital. From there it may be additional oxygen and other symptomatic care or a ventilator if needed.

What can or should we do as a community of faith?

-First thing we need to do as a community of faith is to follow the guidelines that have been given to us. In particular, stay home. We have all been negatively affected in some sort of way by this virus and the measures we need to follow. I think it is our responsibility to look beyond ourselves and see how we can help the larger community. We need to do our part to keep not only ourselves healthy, but others as well, including our health care professionals, and our friends and family.

-We need to be cautious, but not panic. We do not need to hoard items from the grocery store. That is only negatively affecting everybody else.

-Focus less on ourselves and look for ways to help other people. There are numerous ways to do that. We can call or text them with encouragement, buy groceries for them, connect with social media. If on social media please be positive. If you have negative comments, then find a trusted friend that you can confide in. We should not be in competition with each other but compassionate with each other.

-This time at home can be an opportunity for us to read our Bibles more. Our current sermon series of reading the Gospels in 90 days is perfect for now. We can use the time to meditate, memorize verses, pray, fast and listen to worship songs.

We need to be positive, hopeful and a light in our community in this tough time.

What reflections do you have as medical person of faith?

There is so much in the news that is disheartening and makes us worry and be anxious. I have been amazed by the resources of faith based platforms that you can read or listen to that can be positive, give encouragement and shed light on this in possibly a different way that you thought of. I find it uplifting and a confirmation of Who I am grounded in. God is in control and my hope and faith are in Him.

Todd, I think you and Justin have worked hard at trying to keep our church community together since we cannot physically meet. In times such as these we can gain insight on what we take for granted and what is important to us.