Although the situation wasn’t equally dramatic in every country, no government was prepared for COVID-19. The scenes from the north of Italy and New York have indeed shocked the world, but when the tragedy struck, the one constant that was present in almost every part of the globe was chaos. First, we were told that we shouldn’t wear masks, then that only people with symptoms should wear them, and after that in many countries wearing a mask became mandatory. It’s not that we should only blame the governments – powerful international organizations, such as WHO, provided confusing information as well.
The lockdown of this scale was previously unheard of. Not thousands or millions, but billions of people spent a considerable amount of time at their homes with almost no contact with the outside world. As it quickly turned out, there are only so many things that you can do at home before you start questioning your sanity. In Germany, the orgies became one of the methods to keep boredom at bay. However, we shouldn’t expect that this trend will reverse the aging of German society. It seems that the participants didn’t forget about contraception methods, such as using condoms or taking pills like those available on https://www.medicinedirect.co.uk/ellaone.
The Effects of the Lockdown
The internet made it possible to contact your friends and to work remotely, but prolonged confinement had a terrible impact on the mental health of people from all backgrounds. Apart from the fear that you, your friends or family could get infected with COVID-19, many people started worrying about their jobs and the state of the economy in general.
Indeed, those fears were warranted. Due to the lockdown, many businesses were forced to close down, and as a result, the unemployment rate in the United States reached 14.7%. The governments of many countries were faced with a difficult choice: should the lockdown continue, or should the restrictions be lifted?
The first option seemed clearly better only at first glance. Sure, keeping the general populace confined in their homes would decrease the transmission rate of COVID-19, though the cost would be high. As we had mentioned before, the confinement had a terrible effect on people’s mental health. The fear of what is yet to come and the sense of being unable to improve their situation due to factors outside of their control lead many business owners to despair. Likewise, people who worked in industries that were deemed non-essential faced similar struggles. During the times of the previous financial crisis of 2008-09, at least there was someone to blame for the situation. Unfortunately, this time, there was no one to blame, except for the virus itself.
Although several months ago, such proposals would be considered irresponsible, recently more and more countries began to loosen the restrictions, with varying success. Although easing the restrictions in Europe proved to be mostly a success (even though traveling is still largely restricted), the situation in the United States was completely different. On this map, you can find information about the states that have reopened, and those that are reversing the restrictions.
Although the lockdown already placed a huge strain on the economy, it seems that some regions might have to wait a little longer before the restrictions can be finally lifted. Unfortunately, as we found out, the end of the lockdown is often based on inaccurate data, which means that it might lead to a new wave of infections. On the other hand, if we wait too long to reopen the businesses, we may find ourselves in a completely different world.
Are the Authorities to Blame?
In such circumstances, it is easy to blame governments or institutions for the current situation. The thing is, no matter what is the decision of those in power, a significant portion of the population will put the blame on them. That’s why, in many countries, politicians started playing a blame game.
It is true that the leaders of many western democracies have failed to rise to the occasion. However, we should remember that the actions of the leaders, no matter their political convictions, were based on the conflicting data. As such, it was close to impossible to predict what will happen in the next few months. Some of the places that the lawmakers thought of as mostly safe (such as Texas) proved to need more time.
What’s Next?
Currently, it is impossible to predict when it will be safe to travel around the world. In the meantime, we should do our best to lead a healthy lifestyle, exercise, and avoid junk food. Social distancing and washing your hands frequently is crucial, but most of us know that already. It seems that COVID-19 will stay with us for quite some time, so we should ensure that our immune systems are in the best shape possible.
Ideally, we should minimize the chances of getting infected with COVID-19, but the end of the lockdown doesn’t mean that we are safe. That’s why we should treat our bodies better. Recent studies have discovered that there is a correlation between being overweight or smoking cigarettes and the chances of surviving COVID-19. If you have been struggling with breaking the bad habit, or with losing weight, perhaps this information will strengthen your resolve.