The disparity between the news reports I am reading about the Coronavirus outbreak are concerning. Despite the fact that documents have been leaked from China that reveal the official numbers have been under-reported, despite the fact that these people, who have been raised in a culture of compliance are risking prison if they share reports on social media, there are far too many taking that risk for us not to pay attention.
Yet the official news is ignoring that fact and taking the official reports at face value.
While I understand that the official totals for the US are low, I’m also well-aware of the fact that they aren’t testing a lot of people. A woman in Californa wasn’t tested for a bit too long because of the criteria that one must meet to qualify for the testing. My middle daughter and I have visited the UK Medical Center multiple times since her newborn daughter was transferred there shortly after her birth. Middle daughter’s eldest was diagnosed with the flu, pneumonia, and diarrhea during this time. His fever remained high for several days but he wasn’t hospitalized. The medical professionals questioned my daughter thoroughly about any contact her or my grandson have had with people outside of this area. She couldn’t think of any (she didn’t think about the international nature of the UK Medical Center) so he was not tested for this new strain of Coronavirus. He is slowly recovering.
There are several people at my youngest daughter’s work who have been diagnosed with similar issues. She became ill but had to keep working. I came into contact with people at the UK Medical Center, my Middle Daughter, my grandchildren, and my youngest, and I ended up falling ill with those same nasty symptoms. My fever finally broke so I am recovering.
I suspect that there are people being diagnosed with the same thing my grandson had who may have the Coronavirus who, like my grandson, are not being tested at present. As a result, they could recover or not depending upon the degree of their symptoms but the chances of them getting tested for this new thing are low so if they were infected, those numbers would not show up on the official totals.
This means that there is a slight possibility that the virus is spreading in our communities but not being officially diagnosed.
Whether it is or it isn’t, I have realized that the potential is there. No nation wants to panic their citizens so all of them are going to keep the official numbers as low as possible. However, if, and only if an outbreak is truly bad, by the time we as citizens will be notified that outbreak will be well under way. We are already seeing disruptions in our supply chains on a small scale today, but in the case of a panic, we could see our store shelves empty if we are all ordered to quarantine ourselves.
Due to this possibility, my youngest and I have decided to stockpile a bit of food. We’ve filled our pantry and intend to fill our freezer just in case. If it is nothing, we won’t have to purchase food for quite a while. If it does end up being serious, then we will be prepared. Several of my friends have started to do the same.
While I am not advising people to panic, the disparity between the official reports and my personal experiences of late have given me cause to be watchful and concerned. I may not be an expert in the medical field but it will cause no harm for people to stock up a bit on food just in case.
Pureed jalapenos used as a dip or on sandwiches works wonders for a variety of ailments. I have been living on a diet of that along with cayenne pepper and local honey for several days just to stay on my feet. Should you decide to stock up, grab a jar or two of jalapenos, dump them in a blender, puree well, and add it to your diet. Moisten ground cayenne pepper, mold into a ball, coat liberally with local honey, and swallow whole to help your throat and immune system as well.
Aside from that, keep your hands well-washed, keep your clothing well-laundered. Add a disinfectant to your wash to help with germs. Microfiber cloths and warm water will help remove germs from hard surfaces in your home. Wash them separately and disinfect them well before you return them to use. If you want to be super-cautious, supplement with disinfecting wipes or spray.
I’ve collected a small stockpile of both since several in my family have fallen ill.
Please look out for the elderly in your area. They seem to be the hardest hit.
And if you do fall ill from anything suspicious, try not to infect others. Go to bed, get some rest, and, if you can afford it or feel safe doing so, get checked out by a doctor.
Above all, be safe and cautious. I suspect that this batch of sickness may be worse than the official news is reporting.
Governments lie. They always do. They are COMPULSIVE liars… it’s simply second nature. You and I both know the pattern for this. We can warn people but unless they take the warnings to heart, it does no good. Too many have drunk the kool-aide. Sorry, I’ve been looking at and warned about situations like this since I was a child. Now, all I can really do is warn those who will listen, pray and watch.
I don’t see enough concrete evidence to panic yet but just in case, it cannot hurt to stock up on food. And you’re right. Disinformation is rampant. I find myself saddened at that fact.
A friend was stocking up on food then suddenly realized he should also stock up on toilet paper. And soap. And medicine.
Another friend looked at the statistics for this virus and compared it to previous ones like the swine flu and decided not to worry. The numbers for this one are so much lower than previous ones that it would have to get much, much worse to worry him.
I was more concerned about groceries and cleaning supplies than anything. I know how this area reacts so I suspected that the pickings would be slim if I didn’t. Since I don’t have transportation out of town, I stocked up a bit more than typical, just in case.
The comments I’ve received have ran the gamut from ‘it’s only killing old people’ to ‘if it’s my time to go, whatever’ and even ‘it’s the end of the world!’ I neither want to risk catching it (in the event that my earlier bug wasn’t coronavirus), or spreading it. I also don’t want to run out of food, so I planned accordingly.
I’ve got one friend who carries a can of Lysol with her everywhere and sprays herself before she re-enters her vehicle, for fear of bringing something home to her elderly mother. I hate that she’s so scared.
The “empty shelf” photos coming out of Italy are concerning. I have bought some extra groceries and think my son and I could survive 30 days without leaving the house, if needed. I have been on a kick the last few years, buying “3” of whatever I normally use, that happens to be on sale, such as shampoo, dish soap etc. so non-food items were already stocked up in my house. If nothing happens, and life in our communities goes on as usual, at least I won’t have to go to the grocery store for a little while. Praying for protection for all!
Hi, Gran.
We’ve got some empty shelves in my KY town now:
That was taken the other day; it’s even worse now. I stocked up before the official case was confirmed so we’re good to go here. I hope.
Dear Annie,
There is not a “slight change” people are not being properly diagnosed, it ‘s a fact. Just as with a regular cold or seasonal flu, some people hardly get symptoms, how would they know they ‘ve been infected en need to be isolated? And you were obviously quite sick and never got diagnosed..
Over here in the Netherlands the official number of patients is 10, with 1 lady both our age critically ill. She had already been in hospital for a week without getting diagnosed (!). I mean, really?! The official number of people with Corona virus is 10. Ha ha ha. This is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, and we all live on top of each other. I mean, seriously?
I just wish our governments would stop lying. People would remain calm (there is no panic over here now), if they would only calmly explain what is really known at this point, and what course of action is recommended.
Anyways, very glad to hear you are on the mend, hope you get completely well soon! And the special candle for your granddaughter will be burning.
Hope the operation goes well!!
PS: please Annie and all readers: don t forget to stock up on drinking water and those special kinds of salt/sugar mixtures (electrolytes? Sorry, thats a rough translation from Dutch) and paracetamol. The water is obviously very important and the salts will prevent you from drying out during fevers. Paracetamol may not sound impressive as a painkiller, but it tends to lower fever significantly which in turns relaxes your body. Just don t take to much in order to prevent damage to your liver (check instructions).
Take care luvvies, all of you!
Carolina
Thanks, Carolina! I recovered enough to lay in some food and supplies the day before the announcement hit. I’m glad I did. While there hasn’t been a run on food, the stores in our area are out of hand sanitizer and many cleaning products. So I’m set for quite a while. I just hope that the claims that one can catch this more than once are false. I’ve not gathered the courage to even look into that yet.
Stay safe, my friend!