Don't panic, it's just another pandemic

In this COVID19 pandemic, most of us have become very much worried. There are lots of negative news being circulated in media which are making us panicked. My colleague psychiatrists and experts around the world are highlighting that overall mental health has deteriorated in this COVID19 pandemic and it is of great concern globally.

My request to everyone, be positive. your mental health has a major role to keep your immune system strong. Don't surf news channels, news papers, social media, web for hours through out the day. Mostly negative news are being circulated in conventional and social medias. Instead focus on something creative. Draw a picture on paper to check your drawing / painting skills (it need not be great, and you are not sending it for award ). Listen to some music. Plan for a holiday you will have in next year (with detailed tour itinerary). Read some books you already have on the bookself, you could not read those for long time. If you have the opportunity, engage some time with gardening. What about bringing out old photo album and looking back at those memories. Do whatever makes sense and help you feel better.

And..... DO WEAR MASK, and perform HAND HYGIENE. This are the most effective way to prevent infection not only for COVID19, but also for all infections diseases. And, your mask should be a proper mask (not a hanky, loose cloth around the face, or of poor quality ). This is where you need to invest for your families' health. Practice wearing a comfortable mask while in home also. You don't know whether you are carrying the virus asymptotically and spreading it to your family members. Elderly people should be encouraged to wear mask as much possible.

Buy a set of 7 masks (preferably of different colours, or marked by Pen -A,B,C,D,E,F,G). Wear a different mask every day of week. The surface of mask get contaminated while in use. For washable masks, wash after use with soap water, and dry in sunlight. For non-washable masks Store the masks after use in cloth bag / paper envelopes (also marked A,B,C,D,E,F,G for separate use). Don't store a used mask in plastic bag. It needs air for drying.

For spreading infection, Viral load is an important factor. If you are exposed to less number of virus particles, your body immunity can easily fight against them, and you will develop immunity against it (like vaccination). However, if virus number is very high (and your body immunity is low comparatively), you will develop the disease. Wearing mask, avoiding to touch face unnecessarily, and sanitizing hands actually decrease the virus load.

We have the evidence that COVID19 virus can survive in small droplets suspended in air for considerably long time. Considering the ambient wind speed, it can travel to long distances. This virus can survive on object surfaces even for more than 7 days. Therefore, nowhere in the world is safe from COVID19. Again I repeat, DO WEAR MASK and WASH HANDS to keep virus load low.

And.. don't use cheap hand sanitizers made by X, Y, Z companies. Wash hands with soap and water when at home / as much possible than using sanitizer. Alcohol is harsh for skin. Impurities (like methyl alcohol) make them very toxic for your health.

Wash hands after touching parcels delivered to your doorstep. It's wise to sanitize the outer surface of the package with sanitizer spray ( alcohol or hypochlorite spray) when possible. Or keep it untouched / Leave the package unopened as it is for 3 days before opening (No supporting evidence. Do it if possible, with no additional cost).

Lockdown is not the solution to the pandemic and it cannot run for long duration. Instead it is for buying some time to build up infrastructure, and getting ourselves acquainted to the situation. Lockdown itself has caused serious economic losses more than any World war. Government and local administrative bodies are gradually unlocking the country. We ourself should also be ready to accept the situation and not panic. We are human and we live in society, which carries our identity. We all have to resume our normal routine ( ofcourse with certain precautions like using facemask, handwashing & hand sanitizer, avoiding public gathering etc). Avoid using public toilet and bathroom as far as possible.

Again, be positive. This is not going to be end of this world. Human civilization has faced many such great pandemic in the past. With absolutely no or very primitive healthcare support, it has successfully survived for so many centuries. Other than us no other species in this world survives on medicine / vaccine / advanced healthcare support. And they are in this world longer than us. So, be positive. We have so much advanced healthcare technologies and we will win this COVID19 battle for sure.

Ray of hope: The second sero-survey conducted in Delhi among apparently normal individuals found that 29% of the Delhi population has already developed immunity against COVID19. This result was 22% in first sero-survey done one month back . In simple language, sometime in recent past they were unknowingly infected with COVID (without symptoms), and recovered from it. This will give atleast six to eight months of immunity for them from getting infected to COVID19 again. The much awaited HERD IMMUNITY is not far away (considering this 7% increase in about one month). It has been calculated that when more than 40% of the population will develop immunity against COVID19, it will no longer be a major threat to us. Considering the Delhi scenario, rest of the Indias (and World) should not be far behind (or possibly ahead).

Thanks for spending your time reading this. Please feel free to criticize, add comments and your ideas. Let us hope for a better tomorrow.