I had food poisoning this weekend. Though due to having C. Diff three times last year, there is some concern it could be that again. It's hard to say for sure as symptoms are near identical, but the tests for it can't be done until the 25th. Everything is backed up until then.
I think about how much our healthcare system is crumbling, yet people continue to go about as if we aren't in a triple pandemic, as if the world isn't being beset by climate change, as if our so-called “leaders” aren't throwing our lives away for short-term profits.
A term for this exists. Denial.
When the trauma looms and never ends, denial can often be our first response. To deny the awful thing is happening. To deny those that acknowledge the awful thing. What good does this serve? It serves to decrease cognitive dissonance, discomfort, and fear/terror. It's a rather unhealthy coping mechanism, especially as it distorts one's ability to assess risk.
I think that's where a lot of the population in America is. Trapped in denial and that trap is being fed by the gaslighting of elites and “leaders.”
Figuring out how to help people move past denial into acceptance and action is perhaps the most difficult task of all. I've managed to do it for a few people I know in-person (or have known online for years), but it took a lot of energy on my part.
And I don't have much energy to spare these days. I can barely upkeep the Covid Database and do basic self-care. Is this a sign of burnout? Or another LongCovid crash?
Written by Aidan Z. (Aaidanbird@disabled.social or TheBird@ni.hil.ist)