Big Breath and Reset

Some people may be offended that I am posting a silly picture tonight. This was taken yesterday. Anxiety and tensions have really ramped up since the Premier announced new restrictions and a second provincial emergency. We have been flooded with calls. At one point late in the afternoon, I looked down at my desk and saw so many sticky notes that I felt a little dizzy. I am filling my outbox so quickly these days that there is not enough room for all the paper work and it is constantly overflowing. It was tough to try to create a light moment to cut the tension but we managed. Light moments and humour are very important tools. There is a sign on our office door asking our beloved staff to knock before entering so that we can make sure everyone has masks on and is six feet apart before they tackle my outbox. No one has ever had to knock before. I separated my front office staff so that they are even more than six feet apart and we have ordered some plexiglass. Employers need to re-focus their efforts to protect their staff. Many of the new cases in the last month are related to transmissions in the work place. Please take care of your staff. It is your responsibility to them and to the rest of your community. I have almost panicked in the last couple of days. I had a little bit of chest pain this afternoon( anxiety related, my heart is fine). That is my warning sign that I am pushing past or being pushed past my limits. I went for a 40 min power walk which helped immensely and I am already tucked down for the night, aiming for 9 hours of sleep. Seventy percent of your healthcare workers are on the brink of burn out. They are struggling under unimaginable stress. Please support them. The best way to do that is to adhere to these new orders and to be kind and respectful. One of my patients yelled at my NP for thirty minutes today. I will have to deal with that tomorrow. I get it. That behaviour is all coming from fear. We are all afraid. Be kind and gracious if you can. My husband always says, 'When the trough is empty, the animals get mean', or some such thing. Our troughs are pretty empty. Choose kindness. We will get through this. I have no doubt of that AT ALL. Here is where I take my thoughts when my brain and my heart start to feel overwhelmed: Perspective. Perspective. Perspective. For the last two days, the number of new cases in Ontario have been below 3,000. One more day of that and our three day rolling average starts to drops significantly. Is it a trend? It could very well be. More than 30 % of the population admitted to gathering over the holidays. Many of these folks now have COVID 19 or are watching a loved one suffer with COVID 19. Too big a price. But I think we have pulled back from gathering and the numbers may bear that out over the next few days. This is the right time for an emergency lockdown and tougher restrictions. If we pull in for the next month, the numbers will continue to fall. We will avoid the worst projections and keep our health care system from collapse. Just as we get to the 28th day of these emergency orders, vaccines will start flooding our public health clinics. Much faster than expected. Every resident and health care provider in our longterm care homes and at risk retirement homes will be vaccinated by mid-February. Following that, the number of deaths and the need for ICU beds and ventilators will drop significantly. Imagine that. During this lockdown we will see....the curve flattening. Remember how exhilarating it was to be part of that successful effort last spring? We were elated. Elation fights fear and anxiety and burn out and pandemic fatigue. Introduce mass vaccinations just as the curve flattens and the curve will decline. Before the end of February, it is very, very likely that Health Canada will approve the Astrazeneca vaccine. How do I know this? Ok, I am whispering because this is a bit of a secret. They are getting the doctors ready to educate you about this vaccine. Yep. An Astrazeneca-Oxford bulletin was in my inbox this evening. I had a very difficult day but that did not hold back a flood of excitement. I see a youtube vaccine video coming on folks. This vaccine is not a messenger RNA vaccine. Is is a viral vector vaccine. More biological, virological information to follow on that. It is 90 % effective with no serious side effects AND, it can be stored at 2 to 8 degrees which is the temperature of the vaccine fridge in my office. What an absolute thrill it will be if I am given the opportunity to vaccinate my beloved patients. That's where my thoughts go. Above the constant barrage of bad news, above the anxiety and fear and straight to the facts which tell me that in short order.....we have got this. In the meantime, cozy in. It won't be easy. Puzzles, books, Netflix, Zoom, daily exercise, daily mediation or lots of prayer, positive thinking, hopeful thoughts, GRATITUDE and a focus on a future beyond COVID. It is coming. Oh, and by the way. It took me two hours to set up a 1,000 piece puzzle on the weekend. I was looking forward to starting it this coming weekend. I caught my husband red handed. Oh the new things you find out about your significant others and bubble members during lock down. He is a puzzle hog. So much for that puzzle. I am hiding the next one. Anne-Marie Please share. A brilliant thank you to Marva Wisdom, Tracey McGrath, Helen Fishburn, Allison Demuy and Tanya Stuart. This is your 'Finding the Balance During COVID-19 Webinar' team. It was a great event this past Monday. The next webinar is set for February 9th. Stay tuned. For mental health support here: https://familyserviceguelph.on.ca/ For local assistance with anxiety and depression: www.here4help.ca CMHA WW Website: www.cmhaww.ca Here 24/7 at 1-844-HERE-247 or www.here247.ca. And for post-secondary students, Good2Talk https://good2talk.ca/ For non-Facebook users, you can find this post here: https://braceletofhope.blogspot.com/ And if you'd like to help Bracelet of Hope work towards making sure that Lesotho has access to these vaccines, donate here: https://www.braceletofhope.ca/ways-to-