Wearing a mask feels like voluntary suicide!

Who of us still remembers Corona, lockdown and social distancing? Now in the Netherlands, we live normal lives, but the effects Corona has on people still have its impact.

I remember that for two long years, since the end of 2019, we have been hearing about Corona becoming a Pandemic. We are in 2022, a year with no Corona restrictions, only if you are sick. Still, Corona has come to stay. We still hear about it, not as often, but it is still there. The news is more varied with other worst issues like the oil and gas crisis and some other issues. In the news, I still hear that hospitals are getting full of Corona patients while the numbers are going back up nearing the winter season. It still scares people when they hear about Corona.

A little story

After a month of working in the lab at a hospital, some colleagues went on a Friday to celebrate three seniors who have been working there for 25 years. The origin still needs to be determined. The following Monday, many people got Corona, and more were the ones that went to the party. The party was blamed for causing the Corona outbreak at work; still, they blamed another colleague because she was the first to test positive and wasn't at the party. So as soon as more people start to feel sick or test positive, they need to go home and stay until they test back negative.

What happens next?

Since that Monday, at the end of the week, 18 people got sick or were positive and were sent home for five days or until they tested negative. Our lab asked microbiology for advice and told us to wear masks when we walk and keep social distancing. In all the years of the Corona Pandemic, I've never worn a mask for an extended period of time. Where I was working, it wasn't a vital requirement until now that I work in the pathology laboratory. Alway that I wear it, it felt like a voluntary suicide!

The irony

Most of the older analysts were freaked out than, the younger generation. But that is normal. What was weird is that in the lab, we were supposed to wear a mask and social distancing, but when we went to the canteen, we were sitting in large groups of colleagues and weren't wearing a mask. The question of some was if all the rules do even make sense. After two weeks of that, everything went back to normal -even before that- No one cared anymore about Corona. Only one of them said, she tests every day.

Moral of the story

Corona may have been a Pandemic, and many people may have died. It came to stay; we can't keep living in that paranoia.

Stay Healthy!