COVID-19: Episode 5: In it together

[mdlbear]

I haven't seen any advice out there that applies to households all of whose members are high risk, and only one of whose members is able to drive. Colleen and I sleep together; because of her care requirements putting us in separate bedrooms isn't an option, even if we had another bedroom. And we don't wear masks around the house. (Not that we have masks; I have some on order from $A that are supposed to come today, but I'm not going to count on it.) My assumption is that if one of us develops symptoms, the other won't be far behind.

We can mostly isolate S or L (currently on the mainland for the next month, so not really part of the current plan), if one of them is the first to develop symptoms. Or me and Colleen together, if one of us does. Might help a little. What happens if both S and I are too sick to do things is anybody's guess at this point. Worst case would be C trying to manage by herself. Damned if I know how that would work. Maybe there will be people who have had it and recovered by that time.

We will be having some difficult talks in the days to come.

Notes & links:

  @ Why the Black Death was not the bubonic plague.: seanan_mcguire
     Not really relevant; method of transmission matches, but not the symptoms.
     Theories of the Black Death - Wikipedia

Comments

Reuseable masks

[ravan]

See my entry from yesterday about hand made masks.

[madfilkentist]

Separating family members who live in the same house strikes me as going beyond what anyone can deal with. I'm still doing in-person visits with two friends; all three of us are in our sixties. There's a point beyond which safety just isn't worth it.

[dreamshark]

Kudos to your household for thinking through the worst case scenarios and preparing to the best of your ability. But once you've done that, I hope you can relax and just ride it out. If your entire household is sheltering in place, it seems unlikely that any of you will catch the virus, at least in this go-round. As long as you can all keep your general health up so that you don't have to venture out to a hospital or doctor's office, you will probably be fine. I understand that avoiding hospitals is a particular challenge in your family, but all you can do is take care of yourselves and try to de-stress.

While it is tempting to put together plague-driven playlists (a temptation I know I can't resist for long), perhaps you could concentrate on a healing-oriented one instead. I heard that NPR has assembled an eclectic playlist that is meant to be soothing and uplifting, linked to their website somehow. I haven't checked it out yet, but it's on my list.

Best to all of you.