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Friday, May 1, 2020
How to Stay Calm During a Pandemic - Are we in a Stockholm Syndrome ?
Mental and physical health are inevitably intertwined. It is about like the old song "Love and Marriage", You can't have one without the other. As the lockdown proceeds the financial and emotional toll will mount.
Disappointment and uncertainty are inevitable. But we don’t have to turn them into suffering.
It is a good time to reevaluate our lives, where we have been, and where we want to go. Some of us will try to pick up the pieces of a shattered life and security. Others will use their energy to move on. Some fortunate people will be able to resume a near-normal life. Those who have some assets or are in the top 10% may be able to adjust and carry on. For most that will be impossible.
A key quality for survival is adaptability and the ability to think and do outside the box. Look around you and separate your wants from your needs (ie food and shelter) No matter how we plan life takes you on a path. No one escapes it. Rich or poor, we all have regrets, and they are as painful when you are rich. Material things don't hug you or love you. If that is what gives you jollies, you are missing the most important thing about life as a human being.
My own life experiences brought me up short 30 years ago. It took me another ten years to grasp reality. My initial response was I would bounce back, after all, I was young, less than 40 years old. I could always file bankruptcy, wait 7 years, and resume life...I was not business-wise and did not separate my business from personal life. I mixed funds between business and private.
When you wake up every day, are your first thoughts are about what would have been doing if it weren’t for the virus. Do you spend hours reading and watching everything she can about what the models are projecting and what the experts are saying about the crisis?
A lot of people are feeling this way as the quarantine drags on. There’s so much we are missing from our old lives—graduations, weddings, family get-togethers, religious celebrations. There’s so much uncertainty about what we can expect in the coming weeks and months.
It’s natural to feel this way, of course. But many of us are likely fueling these negative feelings more than necessary, because of subtle cognitive errors. With knowledge and a little practice, these errors are easy to correct. By doing so, we can improve our outlook on the current situation and learn to be better thinkers in the future.
ERROR 1: CONFUSING DISAPPOINTMENT WITH REGRET
My late father was a notorious pessimist. I remember once during a long road trip in rural Montana, he announced that we were probably going to run out of gas and have to spend the night in the car on the side of the road. I looked at the gas gauge and saw that the tank was more than half full. I asked why he assumed the absolute worst-case scenario was going to happen. “If I assume the worst, I’m less likely to be disappointed,” he told me.
ERROR 2: CONFUSING UNCERTAINTY WITH RISK
Why does my friend spend so much time-consuming information about the coronavirus? She isn’t a scientist and doesn’t work on anything related to the pandemic. Still, she visits the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center every day to see if the curve of cases and deaths is flattening. She watches hours of news in which experts are interviewed about the pandemic’s trajectory and when they think life will return to normal.
She is making another cognitive error: She is mistaking uncertainty for risk. Uncertainty involves unknown possible outcomes and thus unknowable probabilities. Risk involves known possible outcomes and probabilities that we can estimate. Risk is not especially scary, because it can be managed—indeed, risk management is the core business of the insurance industry. Uncertainty, on the other hand, is scary, because it is not manageable: We can’t measure the likelihood and impacts of the unknowable.
At present, COVID-19 is more of uncertainty than a risk. Will you get the virus? What happens if you do? When will the crisis end? Are we creating an economic depression? People can opine and make informed guesses, but no one really knows the answers to these questions.
Read: Regret is the price of free will
"I could have done more. I should have done more."
Most of us have probably thought this very thing at several points in our lives, but this particular quote was from Bob Ebeling, who was an engineer on the space shuttle Challenger. Last January, on the 30th anniversary of the shuttle’s explosion, NPR ran a heartbreaking interview with Ebeling about his attempt to warn NASA that it was too cold to launch, and his regret that he failed to convince them.
Feeling in control of your life is good for you, but it can also lead to heartbreak over mistakes and lost opportunities.
Dear Therapist’s Guide to Staying Sane During a Pandemic
How to Stay Calm During a Pandemic - The Atlantic:
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Dealing with anxiety, mental health during COVID-19
By now you have adjusted to staying at home, wearing a mask, and sanitizing. If you have not then you probably test Covid19 positive if you can even get a test.
One of the issues that create anxiety and can affect mental health is uncertainty, about when it will end, about do you have Covid19, and even about what covid19 (coronavirus (SARS 2019) The illness goes by a number of names creating more confusion. Confusion is a bad mindset, and the politicians create even more of the same with Presidents, Governors, and local politicians contradicting opinions. Most people take with a grain of salt what political leaders say about Covid. Political leaders seem to ignore and even contradict scientific opinions from noted authorities in public health such as the CDC and NIH.
David J. Puder, MD, medical director of the MEND program at the Loma Linda University Behavioral Medicine Center (BMC), says the news can increase a person’s fear of a topic. “It can make it feel like it’s happening right outside their front door,” he says. “I don’t believe minimizing the virus is good preparation, but it’s important to keep things in perspective.
Loma Linda University is best known for its Nutrition and Wellness programs. Loma Linda University was a center for excellence long before wellness programs became popular. I was a clinical professor at the Loma Linda University School of Medicine. Many of the residents of the community lived active lives well into their nineties and beyond. I never saw an obese person on the campus. They did not smoke, drink alcohol, and even avoided caffeinated beverages. Most of these people were taught by parents how to lead balanced lives. Perhaps you did not have that advantage, however, it is never too late to reverse the poor lifestyle choices you have made in the past.
The Covid19 pandemic is a good time to evaluate your life and is an opportune time to study and implement healthy living as part of your life. Look forward to a new life and remain positive.
Take a break from the news
While it may feel important to know everything that’s going on, the damage from this might outweigh the good. Try scheduling times in your day where you take a break from the news. “This can be helpful for those of us who are empathic and deeply feel for the stories we are hearing,” Puder says.
Log out of social media
When you’re physically distanced from your friends, family or co-workers, you can be tempted to spend a lot of your day on social media, but this can quickly become overwhelming. “When we see other people’s worst-case scenarios, it can create the same type of stress in us,” Puder says. “We can be aware without letting it consume us.” Staying connected is important, but Puder warns against using social media as our source of information.
Exercise
Getting out to exercise is more important than ever during stressful times. Fresh air and physical activity are good for both your mental health and physical well-being. “We store stress in our bodies, so it’s essential to stay active to release all that stress,” he says. “Get your blood flowing and receive the positive benefits of moving around a bit.” If you’re not comfortable going out, it’s easy to find workout videos you can follow along at home.
Practice deep breathing
Breathing may feel basic, but deep breaths can be important in both getting oxygen to the brain and in calming the body. “You can find video tutorials online that show you how to use breathing to bring your body and mind back into a myelinated parasympathetic state — that rest and relaxation state,” Puder says.
Eat healthily
Eat as healthy as you can while you’re isolated. This is especially important if you have limited ability to go outside or be as physically active as you’re used to. “It feels like some people are hoarding for a six-month ordeal,” Puder says. “But it’s important to keep fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet — both for your mind and your body.”
Connect with others
It’s important to stay connected to your loved ones, especially when you’re feeling like you’re missing a connection with the people you value. “Call people, text them, stay involved in what’s going on with them,” Puder says. “Stay in contact with people who make you happy.”
Dealing with anxiety, mental health during COVID-19 | LLUH News:
Sunday, April 26, 2020
Maps of Influenza Symptoms as percentage of Population
Health Plan Costs Keeping Unemployed from Coverage in COVID-19
Many individuals recently unemployed are struggling to find a new health plan due to health plan costs and limited availability.
Those who have been recently unemployed are finding health insurance costs to be a major barrier when replacing their employer-sponsored health plans during the coronavirus pandemic.The study surveyed 1,500 US residents who had recently lost their jobs and their employer-sponsored health plan between March 9 and March 27, 2020. The poll itself was taken March 27 through March 29.
The exercise of obtaining a new health plan was not easy for many respondents. Over half of the individuals who were unemployed (54.7 percent) expressed that they had experienced difficulty in the process of looking for a new health plan. These problems ranged from finding a few plan options to encountering red tape barriers.
The number of unemployed persons skyrocketed between January and today. The latest figures available are only through March 31, 2019
Health Insurance Providers Respond to Coronavirus (COVID-19) If approved the suggestions will afford several months for readjustments to occur.
For patients in the lowest income group at or below the poverty line Medicaid is an alternative, as well as the health insurance exchanges as part of the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) In California more information, can be found at Covered California.
Health Plan Costs Keeping Unemployed from Coverage in COVID-19:
Saturday, April 25, 2020
CMA issues guidelines on reopening California’s health care system
CMA issued guidelines and recommendations for reopening the health care system. The document was developed by a task force of practicing physicians from different parts of the state and different sizes...
It is important for patients to visit their physicians in the next several months. This is especially so for those with chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, those with immunosuppression or any condition requiring regular followup. Call your physician for an appointment. In many cases, medical practices have adopted telehealth which sometimes can substitute for a visit. In some cases, you can obtain monitoring devices such as blood pressure devices, glucometers for diabetes, spirometers for COPD, and pulse oximeters to measure oxygen levels. Your doctor may send you to a lab for blood work. In order to minimize clinic visits ask your doctor for a 90 day supply. Consider using a mail order pharmacy. Some insurance companies and HMOs offer zero copayments for pharmaceuticals if you use a designated pharmacy.
Hospitals are now allowed to perform elective surgeries as well.
CMA issues guidelines on reopening California’s health care system:
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
The Latest Smart Device: Circular Ring:
We have seen the Desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, and now a smart ring from circular.xyz
Activity Tracking
Quantify your physical activities with empowering metrics
Circular keeps track of your daily activities and fitness goals at any time
Activity overview
Quickly see when you've practiced sports. Edit your activity logs.
Activity metrics
Quantify each component of your physical activity.
Automatic activity recognition, Activity intensities and volumes, Steps counter, Walking equivalency, Calories burned, Active minutes, SpO2, Heart training zone.
Activity graphs
In-depth information about numerous metrics for you to quantify your current performance and compare it to your own short-and long-term trends to get to know your evolution.
Wellness Monitoring
Find the perfect balance
Monitor your overall wellness and energy with day & night advanced cross analyses
Wellness metrics
Make your own wellness extra correlation with advanced metrics.
Day HRV, Heart recovery, RHR, Sleep balance, Live heart rate, VO2 max, Energy Score©.
Energy score
The score reflects your energy level for the day based on your sleep and activity data. Get to know when you can push yourself to max out your daily performances or when you may take it easy.
Wellness graphs
You can compare your wellness metrics on your own short- and long-term trends and get to understand the impact of your lifestyle on your well-being in order to improve it.
The device is only in pre-order status, so I would be very cautious, as this may just be pre-marketing hype.
Circular Ring: Features: .
Why you should remember your anesthesiologist’s name
You’ve probably thanked them countless times for getting you through a scary time. Whether they excised your cancerous tissue, repaired your ACL, or removed your inflamed gallbladder, you have likely sung their praise, time, and time again.
I’m an E.R. Doctor in New York. None of Us Will Ever Be the Same. - The New York Times
A few days from now, I will come across the name of Guido Bertolini, a clinical epidemiologist who studies intensive care. Through a colleague of his, I reach out to him over WhatsApp, and we begin corresponding. He had been high up in the Italian Alps through the last day of February, when the distressing messages started to come in from colleagues asking him to join a new Coronavirus Crisis Unit for Lombardy, a region in northern Italy. Some of the pleas had an Excel file attached. When Bertolini opened it, he tells me, he couldn’t believe the numbers. He had to see the situation for himself. With an E.R. doctor from Milan, he drove to the Lombardy city of Lodi the next day. He was horrified by what he witnessed. “So many patients, in every corner,” he says. “They were attached to oxygen in all possible ways.” Individual oxygen dispensers, meant for single patients, were being split among four people at a time. “When we came out, we were silent for all the journey home,” he says. “We could not speak.” He knows the hospital has already passed its maximum capacity.
I’m an E.R. Doctor in New York. None of Us Will Ever Be the Same. - The New York Times: I’m an E.R. Doctor in New York. None of Us Will Ever Be the Same.
Friday, April 17, 2020
The COVID-19 Tsunami: The Tide Goes Out Before It Comes In
Many frontline primary care physicians are displaying tremendous professionalism as bulwarks for their patients and the public at great personal cost. They are fulfilling their commitment to the social contract, and it is on stark display. The government should respect this contract and help keep them whole in ways that directly reach this workforce. It would be a potent signal that they can focus on serving their patients and the public with faith that their practices will survive.
Understanding the tide of the COVID wave is already out, and a giant wave is visible on the horizon, but without more help, the primary care bulwark against the tsunami and its aftermath is in real jeopardy. And like a tsunami wave the first is not the largest.
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Comparing the COVID-19 Coronavirus to 7 Other Infectious Diseases
Comparing the COVID-19 Coronavirus to 7 Other Infectious Diseases
We look at some common, and recent, infectious diseases in order to put the COVID-19 coronavirus in perspective.
COVID-19
After days and weeks of constant developments, it might feel like the COVID-19 coronavirus is the only thing we hear about. But the very novelty of coronavirus — first diagnosed in November 2019 according to Chinese officials — is why we know relatively little about it, compared to other diseases, and why it's important to follow the latest updates and the advice of local authorities.