Have you thought about what life after the coronavirus pandemic will look like after it ends?
We’ve experienced a lot of changes since the pandemic began. In many ways, I am like everyone else who just wants everything to go back to normal. But, the more time I spend thinking about returning to life as it used to be, I realize that there are some things I would like to see stick around.
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Compassion for elderly and chronically ill when they are unable to leave home
A little compassion for your friends and family members with #chronicillness goes a long way! #fibromyalgia #psoriaticarthritis #endometriosis #chronicpain
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Before areas issued orders for everyone, friends and family encouraged and sometimes even begged the chronically ill and elderly to stay home. No one wanted to risk losing their parents or grandparents to coronavirus.
My hope is that this compassion doesn’t end after the coronavirus pandemic ends. Too often, the chronically ill are treated poorly and are ridiculed for declining invitations or canceling plans to care for our health.
Life after the pandemic ends should include the same concern for the health of chronically ill family and friends. Instead of accusing them of using their illness as an excuse or belittling the severity of their condition, praise them for taking necessary precautions.
Life after pandemic should have more online opportunities
Until now, online learning was not the norm. In fact, while some colleges offered online options, there were few options for grades K-12.
Now that students of all ages are learning online, it may be time to further expand programs to make online education as normal as attending a traditional classroom. Online schooling is a fabulous option for parents who don’t necessarily want to home-school but want their children to attend school at home.
Life after #covid19 #pandemic should include more #telecommuting and #online opportunities #chronicillness #chronicpain #spoonie
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Before the pandemic, people like myself who suffer from unpredictable chronic pain from fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, and endometriosis missed out on bible studies or family gatherings when hit with a flare.
Now healthy and sick are meeting online for everything! My hope is that groups, clubs, families, and churches will continue to embrace online meetings by having a tablet or computer set up to include those who were in too much pain to physically attend but are still able to participate in the study, celebration, or meeting.
During quarantine, most are forced to work from home. There will be people who will, on the first day after the quarantine, race to meet colleagues and drink that office coffee. But there will be those who will not want to return to the office. Read full article
Sergey Makhno
While not all chronic illness patients can work, many could work part or full time if they were offered the option to work from home. Not having to dress to impress or physically commute to and from an office saves energy or what many of the chronically ill call spoons (See video below for explanation). My hope is that employers who now see that many of their positions can be performed at home will consider hiring and offering this type of job to someone who would not be able to commute due to a chronic illness.
Stronger family ties
After being told to stay home themselves, family and friends who were once too busy to call or visit suddenly had plenty of time on their hands. They have been calling and video chatting with their parents and grandparents. Children and grandchildren are stepping up and making sure that their at-risk family members have enough food and essential items.
My hope is that children and grandchildren will continue to make time for and to check in on their loved ones.
While ordered to stay home, many families are growing closer. Spouses and children aren’t being pulled in separate directions and have more time for talking and enjoying each other’s company.
My hope is that as life begins to return to normal, people will be careful to not fill their calendars to the brim. Scheduling family time, whether for meals, exercise, or just for fun, should become a priority.
Life after pandemic should include more curbside pick up / delivery options for food and other shopping
Living with a chronic illness means constantly reevaluating energy levels and physical abilities. Some people like getting out of the house and having their groceries delivered to their car. Others prefer to have them delivered to their door.
The problem is that before the coronavirus pandemic, we didn’t have a lot of options. And some of the choices we had came with a hefty fee. For people who live on a fixed income or a low income, paying 5 or 10 dollars to have groceries delivered isn’t an expense they can afford.
Throughout the pandemic, more and more stores began offering delivery and curbside pickup. My hope is that they continue these services for free or at an affordable fee. Less time spent shopping in stores results in less pain for chronic pain patients. The pain from having to stand in line waiting to checkout can cause a patient to have to cancel plans with family and friends.
The outbreak has affected so many parts of life, for so many people, that it stand as a pivotal point in history that fundamentally alters the way we live. Read full article
Mike Bebernes Yahoo News
What’s on your mind?
Which of the above mentioned things would you like to see continue?
What is something that has occurred during the pandemic that surprisingly improved your life?
What do you wish would carry on long after the #covid19 #pandemic ends? Here’s my wish list! #chronicillness #lifestyle
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Related Posts
- What COVID19 and Social Distancing have Returned to the Lives of the Chronically Ill
- How COVID-19 has Changed the Lives of the Chronically Ill
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I would like to think people understand better when I can’t make somewhere at last minute, I would like to think groceries would be easier purchased, but most of all I would love to be able to work again, not sure in what capacity even only a few hours a week, but something I could easily do from home.
When I think about all the jobs that people like us didn’t have a chance for because they required commuting yet are currently being done at home, it makes me hope employers will remember this option for the chronically ill. Of course they won’t realize this on their own. It will require us to remind and suggest the possibility. But there’s at least hope.