END OF THE WORLD

When COVID first started, I thought it would be worse than what it has been. It has been bad, and it's likely to be with us forever but controlled. I thought (at first) is this the end of the world as we know it? I wondered what would happen if 50% of the world died. I thought if I survived, how would people like us manage if we couldn't get pouches/bags? Before I had time to think of an answer, I thought it's not going to get like that. But if COVID can happen, something else can. A frightening thought. Did anyone else think like me at the start of COVID? I think a lot. Luckily, I didn't get COVID (yet), but I know a few who did, and I lost a sibling to it.

Hi Poppy, yes I had thoughts somewhat similar, but when they started talking about vaccines and then doing trials with them with success, I didn't think the doomsday thoughts anymore. However, with variants happening as fast as they are, I'm not so sure we will ever conquer the virus.

Poppy, I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your sibling. That must be so difficult for you to cope with. I would think that losing someone close would exacerbate the anxiety connected to the pandemic. It's easy to believe that COVID is something that happens to other people until it happens to someone close - then it becomes like a nightmare that is real. I hope you are vaccinated. That is your best defense against the worst symptoms of COVID, and the UK has been lucky in that vaccines have been widely available. My cousins in the UK were all double vaccinated long before I was. Still, you need to take precautions like hand washing, sanitizer, and wearing masks, even if you are fully vaccinated. COVID is a scary virus, and we need to do everything we can to keep it at bay - not only to protect ourselves, but to deny it new hosts where it can mutate. Poppy, we are all experiencing COVID anxiety to various degrees, all over the world. Your thoughts and worries are not unusual, especially given your loss. I hope that as we gain control over the virus, your anxiety will lessen. If you find yourself being paralyzed by anxiety, I would encourage you to seek out a professional who can help with managing anxiety - trust me, you won't be the only one needing help with this. I'm not familiar with the NHS system; maybe Bill can give you some guidance on how to go about asking for help. Poppy, be gentle with yourself. You are going through a very trying time, and I wish you well. Above all, continue to do all the things you've been doing to keep yourself safe.

Laurie

Hello Poppy Red.
I have contemplated similar scenarios several times throughout my life and, as yet, the worst case has not developed.
I recall in the 1950’s, when they spread the horrid disease- myxomatosis, to kill off rabbits- (with little to no idea whether it would cross the species and infect humans). In some ways, I hoped that this would be the outcome, and that humans might learn something useful from such a tragedy. Unfortunately, It seems that humans are destined to self-destruct one way or another.
However, covid19 and all the other viruses will be well down on the list of things to worry about if the world continues to warm up and the climate changes as drastically as presently being predicted.
Alternatively, if the world's politicians continue to take us slowly and steadily towards WW3, where the choice of weapons is likely to be nuclear, then the 'fallout' from that may be predictably far worse and long-lasting than a mere virus.
If history repeats itself, then it is unlikely that anyone, other than those who suffer the consequences of human’s destructive activities, will care enough to do anything constructive about it.
One of the great advantages of being old, is that death, one way or another is inevitable, and it matters less and less what method of death is imposed upon us.
Looking on the bright side; we won’t need to be concerning ourselves too much as to whether there will be a constant supply of stoma stuff available!
Best wishes
Bill

As for bags, I believe some people in bad circumstances already make their own bags?

How to Manage Emotions with LeeAnne Hayden | Hollister

I recently had those thoughts also. Idk what the answer would be to that. COVID is a virus; it will never be contained just like the flu virus and its variants every year. More people have died from the flu than the COVID virus. Isn't it funny how for the past 1.5 years or more, we haven't heard a peep about the flu virus? And there is no way a COVID vaccine has been slapped together just like that when it's common knowledge, or should be, that vaccines take years to produce. Same with making generic meds from brand name meds... it takes YEARS, sometimes as much as 7-10 years. These new COVID vaccines are not even approved yet! I am not against vaccines, as I've had many in my lifetime like everyone else growing up, but common sense needs to prevail here.

With the measures taken against COVID, such as masking, hand hygiene, maintaining a safe distance, and lockdowns, all measures that also prevent flu infection. I have had so many vaccine injections in my lifetime I cannot remember them all... all the childhood vaccinations plus polio, hepatitis, tetanus, and many others. In the UK newspapers, there have been several stories of strong young men who thought either COVID only causes death in elderly people or were anti-vaxxers and stated how they wished they had taken the vaccine.

Please protect yourself, and in doing so, protect those people around you from infection.

Yes, Gina, common sense does need to prevail, and common sense dictates we should all get vaccinated to protect ourselves and others around us. You haven't heard anything about the flu for the last year or so because there has been no flu outbreak since COVID-19 precautions went into effect worldwide. The same precautions that protected us from COVID-19 (hand washing, wearing a mask, limited human interactions) protected us from the flu. Pretty simple and easy to understand. Yes, under normal circumstances, it does take years to develop a vaccine, but COVID-19 provided the motivation for a concerted worldwide effort by the top medical experts to develop vaccines in record time. Is there some risk involved in not knowing the long-term effects of the vaccines? Yes, but we know the risks of not getting the vaccine: serious, sometimes long-term illness and death. You do realize we are living in a pandemic of the unvaccinated right now, don't you? In your country right now, the rates of infection, hospitalization, and death are skyrocketing with the prevalence of the Delta variant, entirely because such a large percentage of your population refuses to get vaccinated. Please do the responsible thing and get yourself vaccinated.

Terry

mRNA vaccines have actually been used for the past 3 decades - on rabies, Ebola, and even the flu. It is a misconception that they are new. They haven't been used on such a grand scale as they are now because we haven't faced anything as virulent and deadly as COVID for a long time. I am so grateful that they already existed; that cut the time to develop a COVID vaccine considerably. I am also optimistic that mRNA vaccines will be used to treat cancer in the near future. I wish I could have had my cancer treated by vaccine instead of chemo, radiation, and surgery.

We haven't had much flu virus transmission in the past year and a half simply because people are wearing masks and washing their hands like never before. The incidence of flu deaths, even in years of a particularly virulent strain, pales in comparison to COVID deaths - it's not even close. Don't take my word for it; verify it for yourself. The CDC keeps record of the stats. The delta variant is proving to be a super strain - incredibly contagious, causing people to get sicker earlier than the previous strains did. Good luck to anyone who hasn't been vaccinated!!

Laurie

Some may choose to not read this. I know a lot of people either don't believe or don't want to hear this. I am going to post it anyway. I think with all the sin and things going on in the world, the Lord is giving us a warning. He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because lustful, degenerate sins were rampant in the city. Look around at what is happening today. I think with all the sin and things going on in the world, the Lord is giving us a warning. We take living in sin and homosexuals call it alternate lifestyles instead of sin, and so many things are being accepted today. I think time is growing short.

Interesting posts, thanks

I have had both my vaccinations; I feel safer. I continue to wash my hands and wear a mask. I wore a mask early in the pandemic, and I guess I'll be one of the last to stop wearing one. I don't think I am suffering from bad anxiety due to COVID anymore. I have other things in my life that stress me at times, so I don't always sleep well, and I lay there overthinking everything. I would think that's normal. I think about climate change and the state of the world and its future. But you're right, Bill; it's a worry more for future generations. And Patrick, I wouldn't know where to start making my own bag/pouch; do enlighten me, please! Interesting thought, Lovely. The NHS has been good to me here in the UK. I got a box down from the attic the other day with old samples in it and decided to keep hold of them.

Hi Poppy Red, I do not know how to make a colostomy pouch, but there is a YouTube video entitled "How to Make an Improvised Colostomy Bag" by Tita Nerisa Balverde. Not sure of the country, but probably where people have to be creative for their needs. Patrick

Hi Patrick,

I just watched the YouTube video; it was interesting. There was another one that I'll watch later. There's a lot more on there about having a stoma in general than the last time I looked. Although I have had mine a long time, there might be some things I don't know and tips I can pick up. Thanks.

https://youtu.be/QwlWwy-PrGo

This is interesting concerning COVID. If the link doesn't work, please let me know. Thanks.

A couple of things from the video that are not factual. Properly fitted N95 masks are quite effective in preventing the spread of COVID. It is true that the virus is 0.3 microns in size and that N95 masks only filter down to 3 microns; however, the virus travels attached to respiratory droplets around 50 microns in size.

Also, in regard to antibody-dependent enhancement, this was an issue with vaccine trials against the original SARS coronavirus due to the use of antigen vaccines. So far, there has been no evidence to suggest ADE will be a problem with the mRNA vaccines.

I've had the unfortunate experience of having COVID twice. Once last December prior to having the Moderna vaccine and more recently this past month. I was fortunate to only have GI symptoms both times. In terms of severity, my last go-round was about 75% less severe, and I attribute that to the Moderna vaccine.

Good grief, Adam! I'm glad to hear that you're okay now, and I'm so glad you were vaccinated. Thanks for clarifying the misleading information. Stay well.

Laurie

Excellent video! I hear you, and I totally am on the same page about all this. I have watched endless information by real doctors, virologists, and real accredited scientists that also support what you and the doctor in this video are saying. This is truth!

I am sorry, but you are right; this does seem to be the prevailing "sense" that has been spoon-fed to everyone through mass media as "science." NOT! In this case, I much prefer uncommon sense, achieved by thinking for oneself and deep research. This is not about conspiracy theories or being "anti-vax"; this is about TRUTH and manipulation of the public! Follow the money interests!

Hi Vikinga, I'm not sure how you came to decide what the 'truth' is, but one thing we can agree on is that someone is certainly being manipulated.

Terry

I know you think it is me, but I know it is not. Look deeper.

The truth is if you have been vaccinated, then you will have a much better chance of survival, and I base my statement on the dying wish of a young anti-vaxxer, which was, "I wish I had taken the vaccine."

Patrick, I agree completely. I know people who have died from COVID who were otherwise healthy. This pandemic is now becoming an extinction event - but it is extinction by choice. I feel terribly sad for those who will die because of rampant misinformation based on politics. We are hearing stories from healthcare workers who say that when people are brought into the hospital and told they have COVID, they ask for a vaccine. That is the same as asking for a seatbelt after a fatal car accident. Sad, and so unnecessary.

Laurie

At the end of the day, it's a person's choice if they want to get vaccinated; however, if they choose not to and end up being severely ill with COVID, does that person have a right to an ITU bed? I'm fully vaccinated and did it not just for myself but for my family, friends, and patients. Remember the good old saying: prevention is better than cure. P.S. What a pity your YouTube video has been removed.

I think everyone who's hospitalized is entitled to the best care possible. I do agree that prevention is better than cure. A Scottish Christian missionary to China earned a lot of respect by his motto, "God helps those who help themselves."

I think everyone who's hospitalized is entitled to the best care possible. I do agree that prevention is better than cure. A Scottish Christian missionary to China earned a lot of respect by his motto, "God helps those who help themselves."

I clicked on the link to this video, and it said, "This video has been removed for violating YouTube's Community Guidelines."

Good!

Laurie

Not surprising that YouTube censored it and took it down. They are owned by Google, which has enormous financial interest in a vaccine manufacturer. But here it is. I found it on Rumble, a non-censored site.

https://rumble.com/vkwcb4-dr-dan-stock-specialist-in-immunology-and-inflammation-says-cdc-and-nih-is-.html

That is quite understandable since YouTube is owned by Google, which has major financial holdings in a major vaccine company. But here, I found it for you on a non-censored site called Rumble.

https://rumble.com/vkwcb4-dr-dan-stock-specialist-in-immunology-and-inflammation-says-cdc-and-nih-is-.html

Poppy Red, first of all, my condolences. I have lost both my brothers in the last 2 years, not related to COVID, but what does that matter in the end? This is called life as far as we know it physically. I have also had the concern about pouches or the lack thereof. (You can only stockpile so many before they expire!) What gets me through it all is my enduring faith and knowing that I am watched over. When I relax, all falls into place. A good exercise is to pay attention to RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW; all is well. Turn off the news and media for a while, go for a walk if you can, listen to nature. You are surrounded by the energy of love. It's our choosing to focus on the negative that blocks that off and makes us sick. Breathe. Big hug,