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Help Jan 08, 2022 at 11:58 PM
  #1
This article discusses a growing phenomenon called "pandemic fatigue" or sometimes referred to as "covid fatigue." Here are some ways the experts from the AMA suggest that you can cope with Pandemic Fatigue.

1.
Quote:
Recognize signs of COVID fatigue
: e.g., fatigue, burnout.

2.
Quote:
Seek mental health care.
3.
Quote:
Find ways to have [safe, online, social/physical distanced] community. It is important to “find ways to stay connected,” said Dr. Yap. “For me, I’m lucky in that I like playing computer games and I have friends who I play computer games with.

“We’re on voice chat together and talking to each other while playing video games, so I still have that sense of community there,” she added. “Finding a way to still establish community with somebody or some folks somehow electronically is important.”
4.
Quote:
Maintain hope. With COVID-19 fatigue, “you’re tired in your soul—emotionally, psychologically, socially, spiritually, you are just tired and not motivated,” said Dr. Lambert. “To get out of that fatigue, maintain hope that things will get better.”

“That feeds into what's happening nowadays with the vaccine and all these other avenues that are providing hope,” he said. “If there's anything that you can do to maintain hope, that's really the way to go.”
5.
Quote:
Create a schedule. With “COVID fatigue you feel like a dog that's just paddling in the pool, not really knowing where you're going,” said Dr. Yap. “When you lose those routines in life, you lose a lot of your momentum and the feeling that you’re growing.”

“As humans, we like to have something we're moving towards and when we don't even know when the end point of something is, how can we move towards it?” she said, adding that one way is to change from pajamas into clothes or move from the bedroom to the living room to “help you feel like you have some sort of change that you're experiencing throughout the day.”
Astronauts have suggested similar advice during this pandemic. They know what it's like to be secluded and isolated in space, and they know how to deal with it. One of the ways to cope with seclusion from the mainstream world is to create a routine.

Scott Kelly
Quote:
is a retired NASA astronaut who spent nearly a year on the International Space Station.
He suggests the following advice for those who are shielding/isolating/quarantining/sheltering/social distancing/physical distancing during this pandemic:

A. "Follow a schedule."

B. "Pace yourself."

C. "Go outside."

Quote:
Research has shown that spending time in nature is beneficial for our mental and physical health, as is exercise. You don’t need to work out two and a half hours a day, as astronauts on the space station do, but getting moving once a day should be part of your quarantine schedule (just stay at least six feet away from others).
D. "You need a hobby."

Quote:
When you are confined in a small space you need an outlet that isn’t work or maintaining your environment.
E. "Keep a journal."

Quote:
NASA has been studying the effects of isolation on humans for decades, and one surprising finding they have made is the value of keeping a journal. Throughout my yearlong mission, I took the time to write about my experiences almost every day. If you find yourself just chronicling the days’ events (which, under the circumstances, might get repetitive) instead try describing what you are experiencing through your five senses or write about memories.
F. "Take time to connect."

Quote:
Even with all the responsibilities of serving as commander of a space station, I never missed the chance to have a videoconference with family and friends. Scientists have found that isolation is damaging not only to our mental health, but to our physical health as well, especially our immune systems. Technology makes it easier than ever to keep in touch, so it’s worth making time to connect with someone every day — it might actually help you fight off viruses.
G. "LISTEN TO EXPERTS."

Quote:
Living in space taught me a lot about the importance of trusting the advice of people who knew more than I did about their subjects, whether it was science, engineering, medicine, or the design of the incredibly complex space station that was keeping me alive.

Especially in a challenging moment like the one we are living through now, we have to seek out knowledge from those who know the most about it and listen to them. Social media and other poorly vetted sources can be transmitters of misinformation just as handshakes transmit viruses, so we have to make a point of seeking out reputable sources of facts, like the World Health Organization and the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.
H. "WE ARE ALL CONNECTED."

Quote:
Seen from space, the Earth has no borders. The spread of the coronavirus is showing us that what we share is much more powerful than what keeps us apart, for better or for worse. All people are inescapably interconnected, and the more we can come together to solve our problems, the better off we will all be.

One of the side effects of seeing Earth from the perspective of space, at least for me, is feeling more compassion for others. As helpless as we may feel stuck inside our homes, there are always things we can do — I’ve seen people reading to children via videoconference, donating their time and dollars to charities online, and running errands for elderly or immuno-compromised neighbors. The benefits for the volunteer are just as great as for those helped.
Back to the original article...

6.
Quote:
Focus on what you can control. “Even if we’re in a world right now where it seems like everything is just lost and turned upside down, pick one or two things that you have control of,” said Dr. Lambert. “For me, personally, that’s been my fitness. My wife and I made a little gym in our kitchen and that was our workout space.

“We would put it on our calendars, and we knew despite our schedules there was a half-hour block that we could control,” he added. “It’s about having hope and then also saying: OK, the decisions I’m making now are going to make me more resilient and stronger for when this pandemic is over.”
Notice here, that what you can control reflects around being responsible citizens through social/physical distancing, masking, doing more activities at home or at least 6 feet away from others outside, getting good airflow inside buildings, purifying the air where necessary, keeping surfaces and hands clean, and getting vaccinated/boosted when it's available to your group. It does NOT mean to avoid advocating or avoid spreading awareness; advocating and spreading awareness is something we can do within our control to help influence better behaviors. What we can control is the information we share - and we're doing what we can to dispel disinformation, misinformation, and other oppositional defiant antisocial behaviors that come from people resisting public safety measures. Ethical physicians and ethical mental health professionals will make such distinctions apparent, and will do what they can to slow the spread through using and encouraging all of these measures.

7.
Quote:
Practice positive affirmation. “We're literally doing the best that we can, and we don't always give ourselves credit—we tend to move towards the negative,” said Dr. Lambert, adding that it is important to “think about the good things you are doing.”

“It really comes down to: I’m showing up, I have compassion in my heart and I’m doing the best that I can,” he said. “Even though we're fatigued, there are some things that we should still be grateful for.”
This includes positive affirmations of doing your civic duty by reducing the spread, which also reduces long-term disabilities, death, traumatic grief/loss from those who lose relationships through disabilities or death, medical trauma prevention, and overwhelmed hospitals, which in turn affects our economy and related infrastructures.

8.
Quote:
Set boundaries for social media.
9. IMPORTANT ONE - EVEN THOUGH YOU CANNOT CONTROL WHAT OTHERS DO, YOU CAN STILL ADVOCATE, SPREAD AWARENESS, AND DO YOUR PART IN SLOWING THE SPREAD:
Quote:
Continue to follow preventive measures.
While there are COVID-19 vaccines, they are 94% and 95% effective, which means there is still a 5% chance for infection. It is also unclear whether vaccination prevents transmission. This is why wearing a mask remains important.

“We want this to come to an end and we know that the best way to do that is to do it in a safe and measured manner,” said Dr. Lambert. “That comes with proper education and just following the science.

“Even though you got the vaccine, there's still that window where you're susceptible to becoming infected with COVID-19,” he added.

“Until everybody gets vaccinated, we probably can't loosen up our mask-wearing” or physical distancing, said Dr. Yap.

The AMA has developed frequently-asked-questions documents on COVID-19 vaccination covering safety, allocation and distribution, administration and more. There are two FAQs, one designed to answer patients’ questions, and another to address physicians’ COVID-19 vaccine questions.
Some of the links above are older, so there have been some updates on things like mixing vaccines, vaccine efficacy, variants of concern, etc. Nevertheless, the tenets of maintaining public health remain.

EDIT - I found another article to add on to the information provided initially below.

Here's another article on Pandemic/Covid Fatigue.

Quote:
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines pandemic fatigue as being “demotivated” and exhausted with the demands of life during the COVID crisis. The WHO warns that this fatigue could ultimately lead to a longer, more devastating pandemic.
Quote:
How to know if you have COVID fatigue.

Feeling cynical and emotionally exhausted. Two of the most common burnout symptoms are feeling emotionally drained and cynical about the world around you. ResearchersTrusted Source have observed these symptoms in people who have worked in demanding environments during the pandemic.

Being less effective on the job. Burnout happens when you’ve run out of personal resources. Self-doubt creeps in and, over time, you may not be able to pay as much attention to work tasks. ResearchersTrusted Source have noticed that some people with pandemic-related burnout begin feeling like a failure at work.

Having a deep sense of anxiety about the future. Your anxiety may be related to your own future or the future of your community and the wider world. ResearchersTrusted Source think this anxiety comes from the fact that you can’t predict when the pandemic will end. When things are unpredictable, people often feel they have no control over their lives.

Being less willing to comply with health guidelines. As the pandemic drags on, more people are tiring of restrictions such as mask-wearing and social distancing. Growing tired of inconvenient public safety measures may be natural, but experts say it could prolong the pandemic even further.
[/QUOTE] Strategies for dealing with COVID burnout:

...Keep your routines....

...Strengthen ties with your most important relationships....

...Be aware of addictive behavior risk....

...Build your resilience....

[/QUOTE]

Last edited by SprinkL3; Jan 09, 2022 at 12:10 AM..
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Default Jan 09, 2022 at 12:04 AM
  #2
I really embraced Zoom groups during this pandemic. I started with mental health support groups and later joined Overeaters Anonymous (a 12 step fellowship). Even now that some groups are meeting in person, I prefer Zoom as it's safer and I don't have to drive.

There are all sorts of virtual meetings available on meetup.com too, so you can connect with others who have shared interests.
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Heart Jan 09, 2022 at 12:19 AM
  #3
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Originally Posted by downandlonely View Post
I really embraced Zoom groups during this pandemic. I started with mental health support groups and later joined Overeaters Anonymous (a 12 step fellowship). Even now that some groups are meeting in person, I prefer Zoom as it's safer and I don't have to drive.

There are all sorts of virtual meetings available on meetup.com too, so you can connect with others who have shared interests.
I've also embraced using video conferencing with my therapist, some medical appointments, music therapy appointments, and occasional social appointments. It's a great alternative to stay connected while shielding/isolating/quaranteening/etc.

Safely going outside for a limited amount of time while maintaining social distancing and mostly masking is also healthy. Outdoors is safer when done in small groups, and it's safest when all persons are vaccinated/boosted (2 weeks after the booster shot is considered fully vaccinated) and properly masked (wearing a KN95, N95, N99, or double-masking with a surgical mask underneath a cloth mask - all tightly covering the top of the nose down to underneath the mouth; the masks should not have any respirator valves, since that can spread pathogens).

Although I'm shielding, I'll occasionally go outside for a brief walk, or at least to dump the trash and recycling - all while masked and wearing other PPE. I mainly do essentials, which includes occasional walking. I never shop inside stores anymore, and I only go to my necessary medical appointments (if I can put off certain medical or dental appointments, I will opt to choose online video or telehealth options in lieu of in-person visits).

I've been able to maintain my mental health and work on dealing with racial traumas and other past and present traumas by maintaining a sense of purpose, a constantly-improving routine (I still have a ways to go, but I struggled with this before the pandemic, too), finding support with others who hold similar public safety values, and do what I can to improve my own health while also promoting better health to others through spreading awareness and dispelling disinformation/misinformation. I now see it as my civic duty, which gives me a sense of purpose, which then helps combat my pandemic fatigue. When you feel that your efforts are worth something and meaningful, you will persevere despite your fatigue. You'll still pace yourself and take many breaks, but you will still be public-safety conscious.
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Default Jan 09, 2022 at 04:52 AM
  #4
Our papers are saying they're expecting Covid to go on another six years so govt can't afford to keep giving out lateral flow tests for free, so they're going to start charging for them in the next few weeks.


Only care homes, hospital staff etc will get them still free..which I think is gonna create a 'black market' for them ie them getting stolen from care facilities to be sold online etc.

and what about people who were needing to shield cos the vaccines weren't giving enough protection (due to immune system issues) are we meant to shield a further 6 years or just risk our lives 'going back to normal' and having people in the house again?


Friends and relatives aren't gonna do an LFT every time they come if its gonna cost them over £100 to buy one just to visit me for an hour!!!
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Heart Jan 09, 2022 at 01:56 PM
  #5
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Originally Posted by InkyTinks View Post
Our papers are saying they're expecting Covid to go on another six years so govt can't afford to keep giving out lateral flow tests for free, so they're going to start charging for them in the next few weeks.

Only care homes, hospital staff etc will get them still free..which I think is gonna create a 'black market' for them ie them getting stolen from care facilities to be sold online etc.

and what about people who were needing to shield cos the vaccines weren't giving enough protection (due to immune system issues) are we meant to shield a further 6 years or just risk our lives 'going back to normal' and having people in the house again?

Friends and relatives aren't gonna do an LFT every time they come if its gonna cost them over £100 to buy one just to visit me for an hour!!!
Instead of wasting money on home testing, which would only require more in-person hospital testing if your symptoms present and things get worse, it is probably best to instead purchase masks. Masks do help prevent many pathogens - not just coronavirus, but the common cold, tuberculosis, certain airborne hepatitis viruses, influenza, bacterial pneumococcal pathogens, bronchitis that is highly contagious and airborne, and more. Requiring masks and keeping the air clean with purifiers and fresh air will help reduce the risks even further. Testing doesn't necessarily require much protection at all because many people can test negative one day but then be symptomatic and contagious the very next day - within 24 hours of the last test. And some tests don't detect certain variants like omicron, whereas other tests might detect more false positives, too.

The funding should have instead went to mask production (N95, KN95, and the like; or the new N99s that the US is now creating, which has a rubber seal inside). Masks will help prevent spread from both the vaccinated and unvaccinated and even the unmasked, though you will need a good mask and limited exposure to the unvaccinated and unmasked individuals.

Unfortunately, the abled-bodied almost always wins in these situations. Even when there are laws in place to protect disabled persons, people still find a way to overturn those laws or do what they want to do anyway, because the "majority rules" almost every time. That's why minorities and liberals (allies to minorities) fight hard to protect us. Unfortunately, the world is growing not only pandemic fatigued, but also liberal fatigued, because they no longer want the able-bodied persons to pay taxes that help the disabled, the poor, and/or the elderly; they instead want the majority of able-bodied persons to rule and leave the rest to fend for ourselves, since they assert that "individual responsibility" trumps "collective responsibility."

It's sad, but this is another reality that is not spoken of as much, but it's happening across the globe. Our policies, laws, and economics will show clues to all this.

The only global network fighting for minority rights is the WHO (World Health Organization). Locally, however, we're losing the fight for democracy, liberalism, and certain freedoms for minorities. This is happening in every country, no matter the country's overall religions, policies, cultural practices, etc.

Fatigue/burnout occurs during caregiving. In a global pandemic, burnout extends then to those whom we care about - children, the elderly, the disabled, and then the poor (who are oftentimes mostly the elderly and the disabled, but sometimes also able-bodied persons fall into this category as well). When pandemic fatigue meets liberal fatigue, we're screwed!

History repeats itself if we're not careful, and this is leading to uprisings, civil unrest, many protests, and possibly wars. World War II has many parallels to what we're seeing today globally.

The best thing you can do is to find a strong supportive network that protects minorities (as well as those on the margins/fringes of society), and then grow your social capital. Social capital will be your protecting force going forward. It's become that divisive!

Social support and social capital are considered protective factors in times of local, societal, and global threats. Money won't necessarily save you. But people and resources will.

In criminal justice, capable guardianship is considered a protective factor against future victimization. Capable guardianship comprises things like setting up security alarms, building safe support systems, and building strong social capital in order to prevent future victimization (such as being raped, burgled, robbed, mugged, bullied, harassed, a victim of identity theft, racially discriminated against, targeted as a mentally disabled person, etc.). In psychology and possibly anthropology studies, social support is also a known protective factor that is used to attenuate or ameliorate the effects of trauma, systemic traumas, and/or ongoing traumatic victimizations. The more social capital you have, the better! That's one way to combat both being a victim of pandemic fatigue and liberal fatigue.

But it's the type of social capital that you have that matters. Toxic positivity will NOT help you! Neither will people who are wishy washy and not fully for protecting minorities at all. You will need to find people with similar values, including allies, to help you. The more help you have, the better! If you have people who are on the fence about helping minorities, they might pose a threat to you down the road, when polarization increases globally, and when the able-bodied (non-allies) choose their freedoms over protections for minorities. When this happens, minorities are left to fend for themselves or receive hostility from others, who will likely blame us for their burdens, burnouts, and fatigue. I've personally experienced a mentor blaming me for his burnout fatigue trying to help me, a disabled student. If a professional can blame pre-pandemic, they will certainly blame during this pandemic.

This is why tribalism is a defense mechanism and a survival tool. This is why we could use tribalism to our advantage, in terms of finding allies. Those who survived the Holocaust used allies and social capital to protect them from deathly danger, when eugenics (survival of the fittest in terms of Social Darwinism) was at play during World War II.

Just do a Google search on the information I shared above, and you will find peer-reviewed research that supports my statements - or at least the abstracts of them.
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Attention Jan 09, 2022 at 04:18 PM
  #6
I might actually make my own vision board scrapbook that lists all the good and healthy things I'm doing to protect myself and others from dangerous pathogens, protect my mental health through safe means such as online therapy and going for walks outside, and protect myself from any kind of victimization that has largely increased since the advent of this pandemic. I'll write down the lists from experts above and see what I've done to fulfill those lists, and see what areas I could improve (like a normal sleep routine, which is extremely hard for those with sleep-wake disorders and comorbidity with other physical and mental disorders). Even though some areas will require more effort and time, I'm still working toward those goals.

Some of my personal heroes during this pandemic are:

1. NASA
2. Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, M.D.
3. The World Health Organization
4. Stop AAPI Hate
5. Minority Veterans of America
6. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' Center for Minority Veterans (CMV)
7. The Duke & Duchess of Sussex, Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry Charles Albert David and Duchess of Sussex, Rachel Meghan Markle
8. My therapist.
9. Vaccinated and masked frontline workers in: paramedics, law enforcement, EMT fields, ICUs, ERs, hospitals, urgent care centers, Veterans Administration Medical Centers, fire fighting fields, medical fields, vaccination centers, pharmacies, mental health fields, psychiatric fields, social work fields, child protective services, elder abuse preventative services, victim's rights fields, criminal justice fields, disability advocacy fields, palliative care, nursing homes, congregate care, foster care, corrections facilities, juvenile detention facilities, orphanages, international relations, scientific fields, and epidemiology.
10. Ethical, professional, vaccinated, and masked drivers, shoppers, delivery, and customer service professionals.
11. Those who, as part of their civic duties, shield in place like me, which slows the exponential spread of SARS-CoV-2 and other communicable viruses, bacteria, spores, fungi, and pathogens.
12. Those who persevere by getting vaccinated, wearing masks, cleaning surfaces, maintaining hand hygiene, maintaining proper airflow, purifying indoor air, and social/physical distancing, in addition to advocating for public safety and stopping disinformation/misinformation from spreading by spreading awareness and saying something immediately when you see or hear something.

Finding purpose and meaning helps people to persevere through tough times. It's my purpose to spread awareness and slow the spread by shielding, vaccinating, purifying the air, cleaning surfaces, wearing masks and other PPE, and allowing fresh air to flow into my apartment through windows periodically. I only go out for essentials, and I do all my shopping online. It helps to know that others remain in the good fight against various pandemic wars.
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Default Jan 09, 2022 at 06:20 PM
  #7
No fatigue here. Life on the farm in my rural area has gone on as usual & I have stayed healthy the whole time. Just thankful I no longer live near a city.

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Attention Jan 09, 2022 at 11:29 PM
  #8
Here's an interesting article on emotions related to the pandemic - anxiety and anger: Frontiers | Anxious and Angry: Emotional Responses to the COVID-19 Threat | Psychology

The article discusses the following key points concerning the determinants of coronavirus anxiety:

The authors conducted cross-sectional research in April 2020 in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK, which consisted of 2,031 participants who answered surveys. Their summarized findings found in the abstract section of their article:
Quote:
Results showed that

(1) anxiety related to COVID-19 is associated with conspiracy beliefs, anger at the government, and populist attitudes, and
(2) support for and compliance with hygiene measures are both positively predicted by anxiety related to COVID-19;
however, (3) support for hygiene measures is also predicted by populist attitudes and negatively by conspiracy mentalities, whereas compliance with hygiene measures is more strongly predicted by anger at transgressors (anger at people transgressing the hygiene measures).

Consequently, although anxiety related to COVID-19 concerns the health of individual people, it also has political and social implications: anxiety is associated with an increase in anger, either at transgressors or the government.
The authors explain the following key concepts in their research (see the article for more details):

Covid threat:

a. Anxiety about covid.

b. The Role of Anxiety in Responses to the COVID-19 Threat:

b-1. Terror management theory
b-2. Conservative shift hypothesis

c. Conspiracy Mentality and Populism:

c-1. Conspiracy theories
c-2. Conspiracy endorsement
c-3. Existential Threat Model of Conspiracies
c-4. Populism
c-5. Political extremism
c-6. Mortality salience:
Quote:
Anxious individuals may show two different types of responses: avoiding the threat by complying with hygiene measures or fighting the threat, either by showing anger at the government and adhering to populist mindsets or by denying or trivializing the threat (conspiracy beliefs). There is indeed strong evidence for the ability of anxiety to strengthen populist attitudes, as indicated by the increase of in-group favoritism and out-group hostility (Rosenblatt et al., 1989; Greenberg et al., 1990; Schimel et al., 1999), but also conspiracy beliefs (e.g., Grzesiak-Feldman, 2013; Swami et al., 2016; Hollander, 2018).
I found this article interesting because it highlights some of the reasons we see possible reasons motivating people's compliance with public safety measures and those who are not compliant with public safety measures.

This research was conducted before the phenomenon of pandemic fatigue became an issue, which may affect compliance.

However, traumatic experiences (medical traumas, traumatic grief, racial traumas related to this pandemic) can also affect compliance, which wasn't really emphasized in this article.

It's interesting how some people remain in denial.
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 01:28 AM
  #9
Here's another argument at play that I read in this article: Pandemic fatigue? How adherence to covid-19 regulations has been misrepresented and why it matters | The BMJ

Here's the main rebuttal of the argument:

Quote:
The problem, then, is that in psychologising and individualising the matter of adherence, one disregards the structural factors that underlie the spread of infection and the differential rates in different groups. One also avoids acknowledging the failures of government to provide the support necessary to follow the rules (most obviously in the case of self-isolation). Additionally, one overlooks the fact that some of the rules and the messaging around them may be the problem (such as encouragement to go out to the pub—doing one’s “patriotic best” according to the prime minister—and to return to work after the first lockdown). It is particularly misleading and unfair to ask people to do things and then blame them for doing so.18

The way in which matters of adherence have been portrayed and understood during this pandemic have been spectacularly wrong. If anything, the headline stories should not be of fatigue and covidiots and house parties. They should highlight the remarkable and enduring resilience of the great majority of the population—including those who have been most subject to blame, such as students and young people—even in the absence of adequate support and guidance from government. Indeed, in many ways the narratives of blame serve to project the real frailties of government policy on to the imagined frailties of public psychology.
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 01:33 AM
  #10
But yet here's another study that supports the tenets of pandemic fatigue: Fatigue during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence of social distancing adherence from a panel study of young adults in Switzerland

Abstract:
Quote:
In this paper we analyze panel data (N = 400) to investigate the change in attitudes towards the Covid-19 measures and the change in compliance behavior between the first and second lockdowns in a sample of young adults from the University of Bern, Switzerland. We find considerable fatigue. While respondents expressed high acceptance of and compliance with the Covid-19 measures during the first lockdown, both acceptance and compliance behavior decreased substantially during the second lockdown. Moreover, we show via a structural equation model that respondents’ compliance behavior is largely driven by the perception of how others behave and by the acceptance of the Covid-19 measures. All other effects scrutinized e.g., individual and social risk perception, trust in politics, and pro-social orientations affect compliance behavior via the acceptance of Covid-19 measures. We also conduct two tests of causality of the estimated relation between attitudes towards the measures and social distancing behavior. The first test incorporates the effect of compliance behavior reported during the first lockdown on attitudes during the second lockdown. The second test involves estimating a first difference panel regression model of attitudes on compliance behavior. The results of both tests suggest that the effect of Covid-19 attitudes on social distancing behavior can be interpreted causally.
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 01:41 AM
  #11
The effects of pandemic fatigue could mean more preventable deaths, preventable disabilities, preventable traumas, and preventable Covid-19 infections, since the great number of infections are likely to reach vulnerable populations. Systemic desensitization to these deaths, due to pandemic fatigue/burnout, will also mean less empathy and more narcissism. Yes, pandemic fatigue is an issue, experts say. Will Omicron make it worse? | CBC News
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 01:42 AM
  #12
The World Health Organization's delineation of "pandemic fatigue": https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/...-55390-eng.pdf
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 01:49 AM
  #13
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Attention Jan 10, 2022 at 01:54 AM
  #14
Exhaustion, fear, and resignation: Welcome to Covid-19, 2022 edition - Vox

Quote:
The pandemic is the first time in my life that I’ve experienced something like this: an ongoing collective trauma with many underlying chronic stressors with punctuated acute stressors.”
Quote:
Even if Covid-19 disappeared and all our pandemic problems cleared up today, Holman believes the hardship people have already endured will have knock-on effects for decades to come. Going forward, researchers expect to see more recurring mental illness and continued substance-use disorders, as well as an increase in physical health consequences, including heart attacks and stroke.
Quote:
While the data on 2021 is still pouring in, the rollback of governmental support and the fracturing of social cohesion also may have contributed to an even harder year than the one that preceded it. Health care workers are stretched to extremes. Parents hoping for a vaccine for children under 5 continue to be disappointed. And, as hard as it is to believe, more Americans died of Covid-19 in 2021 than in 2020. Now, the rapid spread of the omicron variant all but guarantees more hardships are on the horizon.
Recall that more people died, also, in the 2nd Wave of the Pandemic of 1918. Could this also have been from pandemic fatigue before the term "pandemic fatigue" was even invented?

Quote:
There might be one boon to finally surrendering to the pandemic, however: honesty. As masks, vaccines, and other safety precautions became politicized, it became harder for some people who were supportive of attempts to curb the spread of Covid-19 to talk openly about their own difficulties. Some instead opted for toxic positivity. “We all had to lie to each other and say, ‘I didn’t mind it that much!’” McKenna says. “I think that’s something people are more honest about.” For McKenna, masking up “is exhausting, it’s uncomfortable,” they say. “I’ll still do it, [but] I don’t have to like it.”
Quote:
Letting up on the moral judgments, perfectionist tendencies, and insistent stiff upper lip of the last two years could prove crucial in other ways, too, says psychologist Nicole Ruzek, director of Counseling and Psychological Services at the University of Virginia. “I hope people are talking about it with each other,” she says of the pandemic’s many annoyances, big and small. “My worry has been that we’re displacing our feelings of helplessness and hopelessness and anger.” Instead of letting things explode, that energy can be harnessed.

So, what’s a bummed-out and boosted American to do? Ride out this pandemic, while working on preventing the next one, says Steven Taylor, a professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of British Columbia and the author of The Psychology of Pandemics.
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Default Jan 10, 2022 at 02:17 AM
  #15
Chicago Teachers are demanding more safety protocols. If they won't institute safety on campuses, then remote learning will have to be the new norm amid lack of staffing. The same could follow in other jurisdictions that allow unions (not all states do). These are some examples of how pandemic fatigue can also be combatted - by demanding more safety when fatigue has hit both parents' demands (keep the kids in school for their sake of not having them at home) as well as administrators and politicians overseeing education. Teachers' safety matters, too! If teachers die from Covid-19, even if their students won't, then there won't be any staffing left to teach, and remote learning will be inevitable anyways. So this is a stark reminder that better HVAC systems should be mandatory for all school buildings, that good airflow be allowed, that CO2 monitors be installed and utilized, that masks be mandated, that symptomatic children stay home no matter what their diagnosis, that asymptomatic positive Covid-19 tests would mean children also quarantine at home, and that teachers have other safety protocols in place to protect them. Pandemic fatigue affects everyone, not just individuals.
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Default Jan 11, 2022 at 09:13 AM
  #16
There's alot of anger here as as news stations are revealing that whilst the rest of the country was in strict lockdown not even being able to visit loved ones in ICU (Intensive care..like on ventilators etc) the govt was having parties!


Lots of sad stories about people been unable to visit loved ones or go to funerals on TV at the minute from people furious to find our govt was at the same time having parties with 100's present (in some parties) where rest of us could only meet one other person even outside!
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Unhappy Jan 11, 2022 at 09:44 AM
  #17
Quote:
Originally Posted by InkyTinks View Post
There's alot of anger here as as news stations are revealing that whilst the rest of the country was in strict lockdown not even being able to visit loved ones in ICU (Intensive care..like on ventilators etc) the govt was having parties!

Lots of sad stories about people been unable to visit loved ones or go to funerals on TV at the minute from people furious to find our govt was at the same time having parties with 100's present (in some parties) where rest of us could only meet one other person even outside!
@InkyTinks - I'm so sorry.

That's really unfair and sad.
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