quarantine Archives - Amazing Health Advances

‘No Lockdown’: Doctors Warn Shutdowns Unleashing Massive Health Crises and Upheaval

AHA Publisher — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 07:00:53 +0000

Paul Strand via CBN News – A growing number of doctors are trying to show why they believe lockdowns and shutdowns are doing more harm than the coronavirus itself. More than 1,200 have banded together in the group A Doctor A Day, and at SecondOpinionProject.com, they are presenting their case for why the lockdowns have been a medical disaster. “We’re looking at an increase in tens or hundreds of thousands of just suicides alone from the increased unemployment,” explained Dr. Paul Fronapfel, a pediatric anesthesiologist. ‘Every Town, Every City’ Dr. Simone Gold, who helped found A Doctor A Day, said, “Cases of depression or of drug abuse that were in check have gotten worse. We’re seeing that all over the country – every town, every city.” Addiction specialist Dr. Molly Rutherford added, “The morbidity and mortality from joblessness and from mental health crises and relapse and suicides, homicides, shootings – all these things – are just going to continue to get worse.” The doctors in this Second Opinion Project warn the coronavirus has been overhyped. 99.7 Percent Survive “The message has been disseminated that this is some terrible infection that’s a killer; that everybody is at risk of dying,” said cardiologist Dr. Daniel Wohlgelernter. But he pointed out, “We know that 99.7 percent of people that get infected with COVID survive.” Fronapfel added, “Ten times as many people die from other things on any given day.” Dr. Mark McDonald, an adolescent and adult psychiatrist, brought up children, saying, “The risk of death to children from flu, seasonal flu, is 20 to 30 times higher than that of the coronavirus. And yet we have never closed schools. We have never asked children or teachers to wear masks, to play separately, to eat separately, to arrive and leave separately from schools because of the flu. And now we’re doing that for the coronavirus.” ‘This Is Child Abuse’ “In my opinion, this is child abuse,” he said of the fear being infused in kids. “I am absolutely appalled and I think it makes no scientific or rational sense whatsoever.” Gynecologist Dr. Olga Swanson suggested, “We cannot lock up our young generation in the house for the next 12 or 18 months while we’re waiting for a vaccine.” That could be a vain hope, according to plastic surgeon Dr. Joel Singer, who pointed out, “There has never been a successful coronavirus vaccine. The last one they tried was the original SARS epidemic. They tried a vaccine. It killed all the (trial) monkeys.” ‘Nothing That Can Replace a Childhood for a Child’ So instead of waiting around for a vaccine, Swanson insisted, “The kids need to go back to school. They need to go back to school for the main reason that they need social interaction. And there’s nothing that can replace a childhood for a child.” “We’re talking about not only social isolation, depression, boredom, but we’re also talking about a strategic loss in education,” said ophthalmologist Dr. Jane Hughes. “If you take a look at Boston and some of the other places where they had online schooling, 20, 30, 40 percent of students didn’t ever log in.” Swanson added, “There are plenty of children in poverty who rely on schools for meals, who rely on the schools for safety.” Hughes concluded, “So I think we’re going to see the ripple effects, psychologically, socially, emotionally for a long time to come.” ‘Pure & Unadulterated Hysteria’ “What is driving the current response to this coronavirus is pure and unadulterated hysteria,” McDonald said. “This is actually a full-on societal anomaly that has infected virtually everyone in the country to some degree.” He said of this COVID obsession and terror, “We have to understand that it’s nonsense. Otherwise, we’re going to be locked into that in perpetuity.” “It seems that people think it’s more contagious than it is,” addiction specialist Rutherford said, adding it takes more than a casual passing by of an infected individual. “People who catch this virus are in close proximity for several minutes, possibly even an hour or two with the infected person.” Sunlight Kills It in a Second The best place to be is not inside, but in the great outdoors, according to plastic surgeon Dr. Joel Singer, who said, “When you’re outside, the sun is shining, the chances of spreading this disease are practically zero. If this virus gets hit by sunlight, it dies in a second.” So after all the guff people have taken for being outside, Rutherford commented, “This virus is very unlikely to spread outside, so it doesn’t make any sense that parks and beaches are closed at this point.” People Afraid of Dying from COVID-19 Are Dying From Other Things Many of doctors involved in the Second Opinion project tell of people who’ve died because they were too scared of COVID-19 to go to the hospital. Cardiologist Dr. Steven Hearne said of one man suffering heart pain who refused to go, “He declined because he was afraid he’d catch the virus. He basically waited till the last minute. 9-1-1 was called. EMS showed up and he arrested right there, had CPR, and didn’t make it.” Dr. Lionel Lee, a specialist in emergency medicine, spoke of another man and his family. “As he got weaker and weaker, they didn’t know what to do because they were getting constant bombardment from the news, saying ‘stay home, don’t go to the hospital: you’re going to get COVID,'” Lee noted. When his family realized he was dying, they got him to Dr. Lee, who reported, “We coded him for about 30 minutes and he passed away.” “I have had several colleagues who have told me that they have had patients die on them,” Lee added. ‘They’re Afraid They’re Going to Catch It on the Street’ Rutherford said of her own recent experiences, “I’ve had several patients who were worried about going to the Emergency Department when they clearly needed to go.” And cardiologist Hearne added, “I still have several patients who are afraid to come to my office. They’re afraid they’re going to catch it on the street walking down the road. And that’s just not the case.” For anesthesiologist Dr. Andrew Zak, this is personal. He said on SecondOpinionProject.com, “The example that really hits home the most is my own mother. She became ill, and she’s also very debilitated and has dementia. Her caregiver was very concerned. However, my relatives, they were very afraid to bring her into the hospital. And now it turns out, two weeks later, she indeed did have a stroke, which went undiagnosed and untreated. And at this point, she is now in much worse condition, and it’s just been devastating.” ‘Patients Are Getting Tossed Aside Right Now by Bureaucrats’ But there have also been people kept from getting absolutely necessary medical care because that care was labeled non-essential. That led plastic surgeon, Dr. Alina Sholar, to say, “Patients are getting tossed aside right now by bureaucrats focused on the virus with a total lack of consideration for the future care and the future health of everyone else.” Even Dr. Anthony Fauci recently warned on CNBC that the lockdowns could cause “irreparable damage.” Rutherford explained, “The consequences in terms of mental health for many of my patients and many people throughout this country are devastating. And it’s going to get worse the longer we keep our economy locked down.” ‘This Is a Lives-for-Lives Situation’ Sholar declared, “This is not a money-for-lives situation. This is a lives-for-lives situation.” Dr. Alfonso Di Carlo said of the government figures clamping down on citizens, patients, and physicians, “We need to start rising up and telling these officials, ‘look, we respect you, but you’re not a doctor.” He went on, “In this country we have rights. All our people in this country, we’re endowed by our Creator; we have rights and civil liberties. And we get to choose what we want to do, not have government dictate medical health care issues on us.” The doctors involved in the project represent more than 21,000 years of medical practice have even written to the White House, warning, “The millions of casualties of a continued shutdown will be hiding in plain sight, but they will be called alcoholism, homelessness, suicide, heart attack, stroke or kidney failure. In youths, it will be called financial instability, unemployment, despair, drug addiction, unplanned pregnancies, poverty, and abuse.” To read the original article click here. For more articles from CBN News click here.

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‘Cardiac Arrests up 800 Percent’: 600+ Doctors Warn Lockdowns Doing Much More Damage Than COVID

AHA Publisher — Fri, 22 May 2020 07:00:54 +0000

Paul Strand via CBN News – A new grassroots organization of doctors is telling the nation it needs a second opinion about the way to handle this pandemic medically and mentally. During a media call, several of these doctors spoke of horrible medical results for people because of excessive panic over the coronavirus. They also told of harm done to ill or injured people because the medical world has been largely cut off to them while almost all resources have been redirected to deal exclusively with COVID-19. Dr. Simone Gold is an emergency room physician documenting these harms as she’s contacted fellow medical professionals across the country and helped form this new group A Doctor A Day. For Fear of the Virus, ‘They’re Actually Hurting Themselves’ “People are not getting their health care,” Gold shared. “We’re so worried about the fact that patients believe that they are going to get sick if they show up for medical tests. But they’re actually hurting themselves.” They’re avoiding hospitals even during emergencies. “There are all these patients out there not showing up to emergency departments,” Gold stated, saying where she works, “The volume in the emergency department is incredibly low. Maybe 60 percent of what it usually is. And this is across the nation. Everybody’s had the same experience, excluding the New York metropolitan area.” “Actually, it’s quite empty,” she reported, saying of her own hospital, “I got a letter just this last week that we are firing 50 percent of our technicians.” Layoffs have been widespread in hospitals across the country since the pandemic hit. They’re Telling Trump Real World Examples of People Hurt More than 600 of these physicians involved with A Doctor A Day have sent a letter to President Trump, asking his coronavirus task force to keep in mind the full implications of a shutdown. In that letter, they warn millions of Americans are endangered by much of the medical world being cut off from them or by them cutting themselves off from it. The letter says, “These include 150,000 Americans per month who would have had a new cancer detected through a routine screening that hasn’t happened, millions who have missed routine dental care to fix problems strongly linked to heart disease/death, and preventable cases of stroke, heart attack, and child abuse. Suicide hotline phone calls have increased 600%.” The letter includes actual cases from the doctors’ own practices: “Patient A.F. has chronic but previously stable health conditions. Her elective hip replacement was delayed, which caused her to become sedentary, resulting in a pulmonary embolism in April.” “Patient R.T. is an elderly nursing home patient, who had a small stroke in early March but was expected to make a nearly complete recovery. Since the shutdown, he has had no physical or speech therapy, and no visitors. He has lost weight, and is deteriorating rather than making progress.” Flattening the Curve Made Sense, but Not Much Has Since In the media call, Gold spoke of the goal America was originally given when everyone was told they must “flatten the curve.” That goal was making sure hospitals weren’t overwhelmed by potentially millions of people dangerously ill from the coronavirus. She agreed with that goal when it was first voiced, saying, “I always was concerned if we’d have enough ventilators and ICU staff. That was always what I knew to be the potential problem. So I was encouraged when people said that we were going to try to slow things down for that particular reason. That makes medical sense. Everything that has followed since that does not make scientific sense and is flat-out detrimental to society.” “I cannot say strongly enough that the healthcare system not only is not overwhelmed, it is underwhelmed,” Gold insisted. “I can tell you of scores of nurses who’ve been laid off and scores of technicians who’ve been laid off. And in my specialty, emergency physicians have cut their hours by 35 percent. I’ve never seen anything like this in my career. My point is: the curve has been flattened.” “The reality is that we are way past the time where being locked down makes any scientific or medical sense,” said Dr. Jeff Barke, a primary care physician in Newport Beach, California. Herd Immunity Seriously Hampered He talked up the idea of herd immunity and addressed what he sees as the danger and illogic of keeping children and young people locked up. “We are taking the healthiest folks – the youngest, the strongest: our children – and we are in effect protecting the healthiest herd from being exposed and allowing them to get herd immunity,” Barke argued. “We’re seeing over and over, especially with the statistics on children, that children are almost completely spared from the ravages of this virus.” Santa Monica pediatrician Robert Hamilton added to the point, saying, “COVID-19 has actually been a relatively benign infection for children. In one study of about 150,000 people, only 1.7 percent of them were in the age category between zero and 18 years of age.” He pointed out those few young people infected were for the most part asymptomatic, meaning the small number who were sickened were, as he put it, “a tiny minority of a tiny minority.” Pediatrician Assures Children Won’t ‘Infect All of Us & Kill Us All’ But the fact that most children will by asymptomatic has caused the fear that if schools open up again and most of the students get infected, they’ll unknowingly carry the virus to the people who could be hurt or even killed by it. Or, as Hamilton paraphrased those who worry about such a thing, “’Oh my gosh, children are the ones who are going to infect all of us and kill us all!’” Hamilton said of that, “There was a recent study following a child who turned positive in the French Alps. He was exposed to over a hundred people. None of them turned positive.” The pediatrician also cited a study done in Iceland that shows basically the same results. He suggested these studies say of infected children, “They are not what I call ‘the bubonic plague rodents’ that we sometimes look at them as.’ Children are not actually the cause of the problem…they’re not the super-spreaders that people sometimes think.” So he argues for schools opening sooner rather than later. Care Put Off Can Cause Many Medical Crises This new group A Doctor A Day is also pointing out how halting most so-called “non-essential” surgeries and treatments during the pandemic can cause multiple medical crises. Gold explained, “There are problems pushing off what’s called ‘an elective surgery.’ That’s a very gray area. Things go from ‘elective’ to ‘urgent’ rapidly.” Dr. Steven Giannotta echoed what Gold said, speaking of the crucial surgeries done by him and his associates at a hospital at the University of Southern California: surgeries for cancer, brain aneurysms, brain tumors, heart and liver transplants, and stroke care. “When the lockdown came, we dutifully reduced our capacity to approximately 30 percent of normal,” Giannotta reported. “All of those patients who were in the pipeline to have their cancer treated or their brain aneurysm treated or their spinal condition treated were all put on hold.” And that put many of those patients at increased risk. On the flip side, the care Giannotta was not willing to see cut back involves stroke victims. But many of those people just aren’t showing up to get examined and get care. “Which means people are sitting at home with potential symptoms of stroke and are, for whatever reason, refusing to access the healthcare system,” Giannotta explained. Media’s Made Being COVID Positive Feel More Dangerous Than It Is He put much of the blame for that on news coverage, saying, “We’ve allowed the media to try to stigmatize COVID positivity.” Many people are already afraid they’ll get the virus at a medical office or in a hospital, and Giannotta charged media link getting the COVID virus to death: “They’ve stigmatized now our healthcare system and people are afraid to access the healthcare system for fear of becoming COVID positive, as if that is the worst possible outcome.” But he pointed out the odds for most people dying from COVID-19 are actually statistically very low, “Whereas all of our patients with care for their brain tumors being delayed and along with our stroke victims, who are unfortunately suffering strokes because they won’t access the healthcare system, are being very severely impacted by these lockdown tactics.” They’re Hurting Their Heart for Fear of the Virus Hurting Them Speaking of heart conditions, Gold added, “Why are we not concerned patients are not showing up at their cardiologist’s when it’s well-known if you don’t go to the cardiologist’s regularly, your heart disease will worsen? Why are we not concerned about the stroke patients that are having strokes at home, not getting treated or dying?” “Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States,” cardiologist Gabe Vorobiof at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles pointed out. Speaking of those suffering from heart conditions, he reported they’re not keeping their doctors’ appointments or going to hospitals because “there are a huge number of patients that are simply terrified of what the media is putting out and they’re terrified of contracting this infection.” The results of that are deadly. “In-home cardiac arrests in the New York area are up 800 percent,” Vorobiof shared. “The majority of those cardiac arrest patients were not revived.” In other words, they died. “Ambulatory cardiology practices have seen about a 60 percent decline in patient volumes since late March. We’ve seen across-the-board reductions in patients presenting with acute myocardial infarctions (heart attacks),” Vorobiof reported, saying the same is true of those suffering strokes. “We’ve also seen reduction of patient visits for valve disease and transcatheter valve replacement. Procedures are way down.” Lockdowns & Pandemic-Panic Making Many Mental Problems Worse Gold introduced psychiatrist Dr. Mark McDonald, saying, “He’s had patients commit suicide because of depression and picking up drug use again.” McDonald runs a practice in West Los Angeles for children, adolescents, and other young people. He said during the lockdown, “I have had probably a 50 percent decline in patient visits due to patients being scared of coming to the office. These are children, adolescents, and young adults. They’re worried that if they get the coronavirus infection, they’ll die. And that’s what they’re hearing in the media and that’s what their parents are telling them.” He added, “And this is not isolated. I’ve had many patients call me recently in a state of panic. They don’t know what to do. They’re drinking again. They’re thinking of jumping off a bridge. They’re really suffering and there’s very little I can do. I have nowhere to send them because there are no resources available. Often they won’t even come into the office.” ‘A Pandemic of Hysteria’ “This, in my view, is a pandemic of hysteria and emotional overwhelm,” McDonald stated. “It’s not a medical pandemic. But the downstream consequences medically are very, very severe.” “There’s an emotional and social toll that this is taking on children, being in lockdown for this period of time,” said pediatrician Hamilton, backing up McDonald. “Issues of depression, suicide threats, that sense of futility, despair, fear, paranoia really, are taking ahold in our younger people, particularly older kids, junior high and high school ages.” Psychiatrist McDonald added, “I’ve had to increase my frequency and dosage of benzodiazepines, which is the valium and Xanax family of drugs, which are highly addictive, in order to treat overwhelming increases of panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms, and generalized anxiety.” He added, “I hate using these drugs; I’m very conservative in my prescribing them. But I don’t have any choice because patients have no other resources. A lot of my patients have had substance abuse issues. They have nowhere to go. All of the AA meetings, 12-Step programs, outpatient and inpatient substance abuse programs — they’re done....

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What to Do When Neither Outside or Inside the Home is Safe During the COVID-19 Crisis

AHA Publisher — Tue, 21 Apr 2020 07:00:26 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – Relationships can be challenging at the best of times, but what do you do when you are stuck in self-quarantine with a difficult person? How do you set boundaries and deal with challenging roommates, partners or family members? In this week’s blog and podcast, I talk about what we can do if it is not safe to go outdoors or stay inside, how to set firm boundaries during this period of self-quarantine and how to navigate difficult relationships with relationship therapist and clinical social worker Nedra Tawwab. First, it is important to recognize that if you feel physically threatened in any way, domestic violence and emergency services are still operational, and you should seek shelter with family, friends or at an organization or home. In crises emergency services increase—they will be available to help you. The national domestic abuse hotline for the USA is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). The national child abuse hotline for the USA is 1-800-422-4453. If you are feeling uncomfortable at home, it is essential that you set firm boundaries, as you have limited mental energy and you do not want to expend that getting stuck in difficult, draining or stressful situations. 1. Know your triggers. Triggers are indicators that boundaries need to be put in place. Indeed, the biggest indictor that you need boundaries in the home is when you find yourself feeling frustrated, angry or resentful. Pay attention to these triggers, don’t suppress them! Think about the root cause of your feelings, and take steps to improve the situation. 2. Don’t make assumptions. Identify your need and act to change what is happening, don’t just ruminate on the frustration or make assumptions. Don’t just assume that people know what you need! When you make assumptions, you create a story and act on that, but what you think may not be true in totality—maybe the person you are dealing with didn’t even know you needed help! 3. Talk to the person you are having issues with. Talk to them in a gentle, but firm way (especially if you are usually passive), making your request in a confident and clear way. Do not apologize or ask the other person if this is okay. When setting boundaries, you want people to understand you mean business. 4. Avoid bringing up major issues. During this quarantine period, you don’t want to bring up those deep issues and start fights. Save that for when you have freedom to move about in the world and process what is going on. 5. Spend time in a different room or separate area of the house. You can even go outside, if possible. Give yourself and the other person space. If they follow you, or are emotionally or verbally abusive, try go into a room with a door you can lock, and if you feel threatened contact a friend or family member you trust or emergency services immediately. If someone you live with does not respecting quarantine, it is equally important that you set firm boundaries and let them know that they are not allowed to enter your space if they continue their rash behavior. It is very important that you maintain your own safety, especially if someone you live with who doesn’t respect quarantine. 6. Set firm consequences. Let the other person know you will leave or lock the door if they do not stop or do not respect your boundaries. But what happens if you are alone and do not even have someone to set boundaries with? How do you deal with socially-mandated isolation? Reach out to your friends, coworkers and family via video mediums like Zoom and Skype and the phone, it is important that you keep your mind active, so that you avoid ruminating on unhealthy thoughts! Start a new DIY project at home, learn new skills, watch educational videos (such as learning how to build a website), and read books! Novels are a great way to pass the time, as stories make us feel more human and connected. For more ways to occupy your brain during this period of self-quarantine, see my recent blog. It is also important that you give your neighbors grace. Be gentle with people that are out and about at the grocery store, in the park or walking around the neighborhood—this may be how they are managing their mental health and loneliness, and is not necessarily a sign that they are not respecting social distancing guidelines. We are all in this together, and we are all trying our best to make a tough situation work. If you are a parent, it is equally important you give yourself grace! Many of us are stepping into new roles at home, so don’t shame yourself for not being the best teacher when you are not a teacher, and give yourself space if you are battling. Nedra recommends waking up a little earlier than everyone else, which will give you a few moments to relax and prepare for the day ahead. You can also schedule in periods of independent play or tablet/TV time for your children, so that you have “me time” during the day, which is so important for your mental health! Creating a schedule for your kids can also be helpful, so that they don’t spend every ten minutes asking you what is next—predictability makes things easier for everyone, as I discussed in a recent blog and podcast (episode #144) on parenting during the pandemic. And if you are feeling hopeless, depressed or angry, that is perfectly okay! We are all cycling through the different stages of grief, as we have all lost a sense of normalcy. So many things are uncertain and unknown, so it is very understandable if we feel hopeless or at a loss. You need to allow yourself to feel all these things, and try not to ruminate on one feeling: let them pass, and don’t suppress or ignore your emotions, as doing so will negatively impact your mental and physical health. It is also important to set self-boundaries, so that you are not constantly triggered at home, which make your emotions spiral out of control. Be very careful about what you are ingesting or who you are around. You need to reserve your mental energy and preserve your mental health, so watch what conversations you are having, how much you are watching the news, how much you are talking about COVID and so on. If what you are discussing with a friend or family member is upsetting you, ask to change the conversation. Don’t be afraid to let people know how you feel. Remember, you need to make sure that you feel safe and live a life that make you feel content, both during a global pandemic and during “normal” times. Like Prince Harry and Meghan, creating the sort of life you want may be in direct conflict with what you family want for you, but you may need to make challenging decisions and set firm boundaries if you want to live a life that makes you happy. Be firm with your loved ones, but recognize that you may need to spend some time away for them. Give your family time and grace to adjust, because you have probably been thinking about making a change or pursuing a certain direction in life for months or years and now they need to process it as well. This article has been modified. To read the original article click here. For more articles by Dr. Leaf click here.

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How Effective Is Quarantine Alone or in Combination with Other Public Health Measures to Control Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

AHA Publisher — Thu, 09 Apr 2020 07:00:57 +0000

Wiley via EurekAlert – Currently, there are no effective medicines or vaccines available to treat or prevent COVID-19. For this reason, restrictive public health measures such as isolation, physical distancing, and quarantine have been used in a number of countries to reduce transmission of the virus. Today, Cochrane publishes a new Rapid Review looking at quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. The review summarizes evidence available from modelling studies that show how quarantining affects the spread of COVID-19. The studies included in the review consistently conclude that quarantine can play a role in controlling the spread of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. While early implementation of quarantine and its combination with other public health measures may reduce spread of the disease, key uncertainties remain as to how these measures can best be adopted and when they can be relaxed. Currently, there are no effective medicines or vaccines available to treat or prevent COVID-19. For this reason, restrictive public health measures such as isolation, physical distancing, and quarantine have been used in a number of countries to reduce transmission of the virus. Isolation refers to the separation of people with symptoms from others, whereas quarantine is the restriction of people who have no symptoms, but who have had contact with people with confirmed or suspected infection. Quarantine can be implemented on a voluntary basis or can be legally enforced by authorities, and it may be applied at an individual, group, or community level. This Rapid Review was done in a short space of time as part of Cochrane’s organizational effort to meet the need for up-to-date summaries of evidence to support decision-making in combating the effects and impact of COVID-19. Cochrane researchers used abbreviated systematic review methods to address the following questions as quickly as possible: Is quarantine of asymptomatic individuals who were in contact with a confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19 effective to control the COVID-19 outbreak? Are there differences in the effectiveness of quarantine in different settings? How effective is quarantine when combined with other interventions, such as case isolation, school closures, or antiviral drugs, in reducing transmission, incidence of diseases, and death? Is quarantine of individuals coming from a country with a declared COVID-19 outbreak effective in controlling the COVID-19 outbreak? The authors identified 29 relevant studies. Of these, 10 focused on COVID-19, 15 focused on related evidence on SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), two focused on SARS and other viruses, and two focused on MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome). The 10 studies addressing COVID-19 were all modelling studies simulating outbreak scenarios in China, the UK, and South Korea, and on a cruise ship. The COVID-19 modelling studies included in the review consistently report a benefit of quarantine measures and show similar findings from studies on SARS and MERS. The authors of this Cochrane Review concluded that: Quarantine of people exposed to confirmed cases may avert high proportions of infections and deaths compared to no measures. The effect of quarantine of travelers from a country with a declared outbreak to avert transmission and deaths was small. In general, the combination of quarantine with other prevention and control measures, such as school closures, travel restrictions, and physical distancing, had a greater effect on the reduction of transmissions, cases which required critical care beds, and deaths compared with quarantine alone. More comprehensive and early implementation of prevention and control measures may be more effective in containing the COVID-19 outbreak. The researchers rate their confidence in the results to be low or very low because of the way that the models used in the studies were developed. They are based on assumptions about the true prevalence of infection, which could be updated when we know more about this aspect of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the authors also stress the importance of using information about the local context in deciding on how measures such as quarantining should be adopted and when they can be lifted. Lead author Barbara Nußbaumer-Streit said “This Cochrane Review shows that while quarantine may help in containing the COVID-19 outbreak, decision-makers will need to constantly monitor the outbreak situation locally in order to maintain the best possible balance of measures in place, and that there is an acceptable trade-off between benefits and harms.” Cochrane Editor in Chief, Karla Soares-Weiser, added, “The spread of coronavirus presents a major challenge for governments all over the world. Cochrane has a duty to provide the best available evidence to support policy-making, balancing rigour with speed. We have fast-tracked this review because it addresses one of the highest priority questions we have identified. This review is particularly helpful for decision makers looking for evidence to inform their decisions around the implementation of quarantine measures.” To read the original article click here.

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How to Deal with the Pain of Uncertainty and Insecurity During the Current Crisis + More Tips and Mental Health Strategies to Help You Find Peace During the Pandemic

AHA Publisher — Thu, 09 Apr 2020 07:00:15 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – In today’s blog and podcast, I am going to be answering some of the questions you have sent in regarding handling COVID-19 anxiety, and coping with social distancing and staying at home. I want to try to help you as much as I can, giving you tools to help you manage your mind in this crisis and stay strong, mentally and physically. 1. How do I talk to my children about the situation without scaring them, while making sure they are taking the right precautions like washing hands? I don’t believe in pussyfooting around issues with children – they are smart and can read your body language. Remember, 50% of communication is non-verbal, and your children know when you are anxious or sad. Children between the ages of 2 to 10/11 don’t really have the language to express themselves either, so if you don’t help them express and process the anxiety they have picked up from you or others, they can embed it as toxic stress in their bodies—the more traumatized you become, the more they will become. I know that talking to them places huge responsibility on us as parents and guardians, and we definitely need to speak to them in the right way, but hey, that’s what we signed up for! So, my advice, based on 25 years of clinical practice and having four children of my own, is to be honest. Explain what is going on at the level they are at, giving them just enough information (don’t go overboard) and tell them the adults are working on this. It may be a good idea to show them pictures of the virus, giving analogies that are age-appropriate. For example, “this virus is like a dangerous animal. You keep away from those as much as possible, and with the virus we have do that by washing our hands and staying indoors till they ‘catch it.’” 2. How do we deal with and help with anxiety and angry outbursts from kids? Outbursts come from frustration, which comes from a lack of understanding and fear, so calm your children down by explaining what is going on, like I mentioned above. But it is also important to remember that we are stuck together for longer than usual and this situation is new for everyone, so it is inevitable that we will get frustrated with each other. I recommend having different “spaces” in your home to deal with frustration and all the other emotions our children are dealing with right now—don’t be frightened or irriatted. This is actually a blessing in disguise because you have a great opportunity to teach your kids to learn how to process through the issues in their life, a skill they will carry into adulthood! Allocate an area of your kitchen, for example, where your children can express their frustration in a safe and non-judgmental space. You may not always like what you hear, but you may need to hear it to help them. Set some basic rules, like no-one is allowed to physically touch anyone else in that space, no-one hurts anyone or calls anyone bad names there. When they come out that space, and when they are ready, hug them and tell them you love them. This will calm them down and is great for the mental health. 3. What do you if you have been exposed to someone or know someone who has the virus? How do you cope, heal and manage your anxiety? Knowledge is power, so, now that you know, follow the CDC and WHO guidelines. You can also listen to my latest podcast (episode #145) and blog with an epidemiologist on what to do if you are feeling ill. Most importantly, manage your mind! Don’t let your anxiety take over: grab that thought and reconceptualize (reimagine) it, before it takes over your thinking and puts you into toxic stress, which weakens your immune system (as I discussed on a recent podcast). Stop, tune into how you feel, listening to the physical warning signals your body is sending you, recognize how you feel and make the stress you are experiencing work for you: tell yourself this is preparing you for action! Tell yourself that your body is working to fight for you, breathe deeply, and tell yourself you got this. My app Switch is a great tool for helping you go through the reconceptualization process. It is based on my 5-step program, which is designed to help you identify and eliminate the root of the toxic mindsets that are holding you back, and help you build a healthy new thinking habits through the mental process of reconceptualization. 4. How do I deal with the loneliness of social distancing and home quarantine? First, reconceptualize your loneliness—look at it differently. Take the time you now have on your hands to have more thinker moments, where you just switch off to the external and let your mind wander and daydream. These moments give the brain a rest and allow it to reboot and heal, which increases your clarity of mind and ability to deal with a tough situation (which we all need right now!) So, be intentional about creating “thinker” breaks throughout your day by taking a few moments every day, or when you are feeling alone, to switch off and just daydream or meditate. For more information on thinker moments and how to make them a part of your daily routine, see my book, Think, Learn, Succeed. You can also use this time as a chance to build and repair relationships by talking on the phone rather than just texting, spending time healing from “hurry sickness”, observing the world around you again, and become a good listener—we are all going through stuff, so take the time to call someone or connect. Just listen and support them, and be there for them. A massive cure for loneliness is to get over yourself and reaching out in love. This not only helps you feel less lonely, but it also increases your chance of healing! If you are feeling lonely and anxious, join me on Instagram for a live conversation about mental health, dealing with COVID-19 stress and finding peace in the pandemic! Follow me @drcarolineleaf to get notifications. You can also join us on Facebook! Despite the necessity of social distancing, we believe we can still come together as a community and be supportive, loving, and caring through technology, which is why we have also created our Facebook group. This is a group for everyone-a place to post prayer requests, questions, concerns, updates, encouragement, needs and so on. We are in this together! 5. How do I “turn my brain off” at night from worrying so I can sleep? The quality and quantity of your sleep is largely affected by your state of mind, so mind management is critical if you want to sleep well at night, as I discussed in a recent blog and podcast (episode #97). Anxiety causes high beta activity, but anxiety always has a cause, so take the time to find the cause and you will help yourself switch into sleep mode at night. Embrace, process and reconceptualize your thoughts! During the course of the day, you need to self-regulate your thinking and choosing during the course of the day. Chaotic and toxic thoughts need to be embraced, acknowledged, isolated and compartmentalized in order to be processed and reconceptualized in a healthy fashion—they should never be ignored or suppressed. You can do this proactively by getting into a regular 7-15-minute mind detox routine. Just 7-15 minutes a day of detoxing your mind can improve your sleeping patterns because you are cleaning up the mental mess in your head and getting your mind right before bed, which helps your brain and body regenerate at night. You control your mind: you can watch yourself, thinking about your thinking, and deciding not to allow a toxic thought to destroy your day. You are literally standing back and watching yourself thinking as if you were another person Do not allow yourself to lie in bed panicking about not sleeping. Instead, get excited and embrace the fact you are awake. Think that “this is going to be a nice, quiet time, where I am not bugged by texts, emails or people needing something. I am going to get that research done, finally read that book, watch that program on the Discovery Channel, tidy that closet or work uninterrupted on a project!” This excitement lowers your cortisol levels, balances the HPA axis (the “stress axis”) and makes stress work for you and not against you, activating your resilience and changing your genes in a good way. So, when you can’t sleep, develop a positive expectation mindset that this is a special time just for you, and you will use it wisely. This will help you get your panic under control and improve your health. A negative expectation mindset, however, is just going to damage your brain and make you feel worse—it’s not worth it! See my book Think, Learn, Succeed for more on this. My app Switch is also a great tool for helping you go through this process. It is designed to help you identify and eliminate the root of your anxiety, and help you build a healthy new thinking habits through the mental process of reconceptualization. 6. What if you have to leave your children in a childcare setting so you can work during the pandemic? What if you feel guilty for leaving your child? It is important to remember that guilt chains you, keeping you stuck in negative thinking patterns which can damage your brain and body and make you feel drained. Don’t allow the guilt to get a hold in your brain; reconceptualize this, telling yourself that this is your reality and it is only temporary. You control your mind. Your mind is more powerful than the guilt! Don’t allow your mind to go down that rabbit hole. Visualize it, grab hold of it, speak to it, acknowledge it and tell yourself that this is not a great situation but you are doing it for your family 7. I’m struggling to sleeping and to concentrate. How do I find peace while expressing my feelings? I cannot say this enough: thoughts are real things with information and emotions, and if you try to suppress them or shove them “under the rug”, they will explode, and can damage your mental and physical health—including your ability to sleep and concentrate. These thoughts will come. As I said above, you need to acknowledge how you feel and reconceptualize it: see it from another angle or perspective. You can only redesign your thoughts when you have acknowledged them! 8. How can I help my young adult children in college deal with the negative media, toxic work loads and the loss of their social life? Talk it through with them, allow them to say “it sucks”. Like you, they also need to embrace, acknowledge and reconceptualize their thinking. Let them express all their negativity and anger—make sure they feel noticed and heard. First listen, then problem-solve together. Give advice only when they ask for it, because then they will be ready to hear it! There’s no one formula for dealing with loss, so be creative; for instance, plan for a future celebration or vacation! 9. How do I handle constant change? Uncertainty and the unknown can be disorientating, but it is important to remember that change is really the only constant in life. Even your brain changes—every moment of every day! Accepting change, rather than always fighting it, helps us roll with it, making the most of change by seeing new possibilities in new situations. I call this the possibility mindset, which I discuss in my book Think, Learn, Succeed. Broaden your mind: tell yourself you are designed to cope with change, and there are a thousand things to learn and ways to adapt to any...

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