lofwyr
05-03-20, 14:23
This is not a post about the virus itself, nor is it an acknowledgement of fear about the virus. I am actually in a pretty good place mentally regarding the whole situation, in spite of being in a high risk group. I do worry a bit about my dad, who is over 80 and checks off almost every single risk factor for high mortality, but all that aside, the whole experience so far has been a very curious one of detachment, and what is more interesting to me, is how the world--even people with no HA history--is reacting.
Today Starbucks quit using personal cups. People are flying so little you can fly to Europe from the US for $300. There is almost no toilet paper or bottled water to be found in our local Walmart. I saw an article that suggested as many as 300 million children globally are being kept home from school, many of which in places where there are no cases yet. The list like this goes on and on and on.
What I find interesting is the absolute level of panic on display, and how much it reminds me, objectively speaking, of my HA when it was at its peak. It is a very curious display of what my panic disorder was like when I was much younger, and watching people work themselves into an absolute frenzy of panic from a fairly normal level is an interesting one, from an academic perspective. It is an eye opening observation, which I am actually able to use in correcting my own behavior.
I was wondering how people cannot see the panic and hysteria, but then realize, the world is functioning on a societal level at about the same place I was at my worst days of dealing with HA, or at least that is what it feels like.
I appreciate the situation *is* serious, and right now, for some people like my father especially, the threat of infection is quite a serious one. But for many of us--by a wide margin MOST of us--this is a classic example of the panic being worse than the actual illness. My adult children's investments, which grew gradually through their entire childhoods, nearly halved in the past week. The lack of toilet paper is weirdly off-putting, and more than a little irritating. That said, my social anxiety is pretty comfortable with everyone not hugging and shaking hands--it is like I was training for that my entire life, and think I am delighted to embrace it forever more.
But then I am reminded, they are just scared. I, of all people, should be able to understand that. Some of the thinking I am seeing on a societal level is just a reflection and reminder of some of my darkest days, and maybe therein lies my lack of patience. This is also an eye opener for me, a sign of what it must have been like to deal with ME when I was panicking and terrified over so many imagined scenarios back in the day. It made me appreciate my wife's lion-like patience so much more, which I guess is a silver lining of this whole ordeal.
Anyone else witness some of their own worst behavior out there being conducted by not one, but MANY people over the virus panic?
Today Starbucks quit using personal cups. People are flying so little you can fly to Europe from the US for $300. There is almost no toilet paper or bottled water to be found in our local Walmart. I saw an article that suggested as many as 300 million children globally are being kept home from school, many of which in places where there are no cases yet. The list like this goes on and on and on.
What I find interesting is the absolute level of panic on display, and how much it reminds me, objectively speaking, of my HA when it was at its peak. It is a very curious display of what my panic disorder was like when I was much younger, and watching people work themselves into an absolute frenzy of panic from a fairly normal level is an interesting one, from an academic perspective. It is an eye opening observation, which I am actually able to use in correcting my own behavior.
I was wondering how people cannot see the panic and hysteria, but then realize, the world is functioning on a societal level at about the same place I was at my worst days of dealing with HA, or at least that is what it feels like.
I appreciate the situation *is* serious, and right now, for some people like my father especially, the threat of infection is quite a serious one. But for many of us--by a wide margin MOST of us--this is a classic example of the panic being worse than the actual illness. My adult children's investments, which grew gradually through their entire childhoods, nearly halved in the past week. The lack of toilet paper is weirdly off-putting, and more than a little irritating. That said, my social anxiety is pretty comfortable with everyone not hugging and shaking hands--it is like I was training for that my entire life, and think I am delighted to embrace it forever more.
But then I am reminded, they are just scared. I, of all people, should be able to understand that. Some of the thinking I am seeing on a societal level is just a reflection and reminder of some of my darkest days, and maybe therein lies my lack of patience. This is also an eye opener for me, a sign of what it must have been like to deal with ME when I was panicking and terrified over so many imagined scenarios back in the day. It made me appreciate my wife's lion-like patience so much more, which I guess is a silver lining of this whole ordeal.
Anyone else witness some of their own worst behavior out there being conducted by not one, but MANY people over the virus panic?