I don’t understand how this has become a valid question. But here we are.
For the past couple of years, the goal has been to make a handful of necessary changes in our lives to avoid catching the Coronavirus or spreading it to others. Wear a mask, wash your hands, maintain physical distancing, and self-isolate if we begin to feel symptoms: simple tasks that require nothing resembling ‘a hardship’.
The narrative seems to have changed with the discovery of ‘Omicron’. It now seems that the strategy for many, including many who are vaccinated & boosted, has become ‘Throw your hands in the air and say “Fuck it”.
I’ve had several conversations in the past few weeks that reflect this change. People I know and respect have said things like “Well if we’re all probably going to catch it, I’d rather catch it now and get it out of the way”. Or “It’s supposed to be mild like the common cold, so it won’t be that bad”.
I’ve seen people out and about in public settings with symptoms that could very well be the flu or COVID-19, yet there they are coughing and sniffing around others. I’ve seen people more their masks aside so they can cough, then put them back into place. I’ve seen all of these things take place within interior spaces with no clear source of ventilation, or with the recommended physical distancing.
We’re all tired of COVID. I get it, and I understand the frustration and reticence. I’d love to go places and not worry about the seal of a mask against my face. I’d love to be able to get close to those I like, and have wonderfully intimate conversations. I’d love to be able to sing and laugh in close spaces with others, and enjoy life as we knew it in the pre-COVID era.
But I can’t and I won’t. Yes, some studies have hinted that the Omicron variant appears to be less deadly. And yes, some epidemiologists have said that it’s likely we’ll all eventually catch Omicron because it’s highly contagious. But I’m still not ready to throw up my hands and surrender.
Hospitalizations are at record levels again. Daily deaths due to COVID (based on 7-day averages fluctuates between 1200 and 1500. Most of the hospitalized are unvaccinated. The remainder? Vaccinated. Most of the dead are unvaccinated. The remainder? Vaccinated.
Important questions remain unanswered in all of these discussions. Risk factors notwithstanding, nobody has been able to ascertain why some people are symptomatic, and others develop symptoms at varying degrees of severity. They’re unable to ascertain why some need to be hospitalized while others can ride it out at home.
The most important question for me, however, concerns the possibility of death. No one has been able to definitively ascertain why some die after exposure and others do not. Risk factors (and multiple risk factors) certainly do play a large part, but not everyone. There are still some who die without having any significant risk factors.
As an asthmatic, I’m not willing to roll the dice because someone I know read on the internet that Omicron appears less deadly or likely won’t put me in the hospital. If I can easily continue to mask, wash hands, and distance, this choice is a no-brainer. I’m doing it…and gladly!
All I ask is that those of you who are tired of taking precautions PLEASE stop trying to make risk assessment choices for me. When you want to be maskless in an interior space, I can’t be there. When you come to talk to me up close, even masked, I will move back. If you come to talk to me up close AND unmasked indoors, I will need to walk away. These are your choices, not mine.