BY SIMONE J. SMITH
“Trust us. The worst is yet ahead of us. Let’s prevent this tragedy. It’s a virus that many people still don’t understand.” General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Director, WHO)
If you turn on the television and hear your local politician tell you that normal is right around the corner, they are either fooling themselves, or you, or perhaps both.
Life as we know it is long gone, and it is not coming back. It is important that you come to terms with this, not only so you can take action, but to preserve your mental health. Some of us have come to terms with the fact that our world has permanently changed. Whether it is for the good, or for the bad is a personal ideology. For some: wearing a mask everywhere not shaking hands, Zoom calling holidays, less physical interaction and work from home might seem ideal. To others, it is the beginning of a nightmare.
To think, this is only the beginning. Science Alert put out an article on January 8th, 2021 reviewing what had been discovered about the new COVID-19 mutations. Most recently, there was an emergence discovered in Britain and South Africa of two new variants of Sars-CoV-2. Scientists have been tracking multiple mutations of Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. What they noted was that the majority of mutations did not materially alter the virus’s transmissibility.
However, there is one mutation – variant B117, which seems to have emerged in southeastern England in September. According to Imperial College London (Report 42) the variant has been detected in countries around the world including the United States, France, and India.
Another variant, 501.V2, was detected in South Africa in October, and has since spread to several nations, including Britain and France. Science Alert (January 8th, 2021) reported that both have multiple mutations to the virus, especially on the part of the virus that latches on to human cells and helps it spread. This variation is what makes the mutated versions potentially more infectious than other strains. There are also reports that say there is currently no evidence to suggest that the mutated viruses are any stronger than normal.
What does this all mean? For us in Canada, this could mean more of what we are currently experiencing (lockdowns, closed business, social isolation). Even though the government has rolled out a vaccine initiative, there has been resonating worry that the vaccine won’t work for the new mutations. During my research, I noticed that our global leaders were unable to provide verified scientific data that proved the vaccine would work on the new variants:
WASHINGTON — QUESTION:
“Will the current COVID-19 vaccines protect against variant strains of the virus?”
ANSWER:
Our experts believe so.
(CBS19, “VERIFY: Are current COVID-19 vaccines effective against variant strains?”)
“This preliminary new study is giving us early evidence that a COVID-19 vaccine might be effective against two new coronavirus variants first identified in South Africa and the U.K., despite a concerning mutation. The study still needs to be peer reviewed.” (Dr. Nachman, Head of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital)
“While we plan to run tests to confirm the activity of the vaccine against any strain, the broad range of potential neutralizing antibodies made possible by the Moderna COVID 19 Vaccine provide confidence that our vaccine will also be effective at inducing neutralizing antibodies against them.” (Moderna, December 2020)
The European Centre for Disease and Control (ECDC) reported that in countries currently unaffected by the new mutations, “Efforts to delay the spread should mirror those made during the earlier stage of the pandemic.” These efforts include tests and quarantining of new arrivals, contact tracing, and limited travel.
We so badly want to believe that somehow, someway, life is going to go back to how it was. There is a psychological concept called the normalcy bias. It explains why most people underestimate threats, and are plagued by inaction during a crisis. This theory also goes by the names: normality bias, incredulity response, analysis paralysis, and most interesting of all, the ostrich effect.
An article in PsycholoGenie “An Insight into the Concept of Normalcy Bias in Psychology,” estimated that 70% of people are affected by normalcy bias. Of the remaining 30%, 15% of the people freak out, while the remaining 15% show presence of mind. The 70% can help in pacifying those people who freak out in crisis situations, but also may hinder those who want to take action.
One by one, our rights and freedoms are being taken away from us, and normalcy bias is preventing us from acting to protect ourselves, and our families. Wearing masks has not helped. We are not sure if the vaccine is going to help. How do we overcome normalcy bias so that we can take action?
If you are reading this article, you are already on the right path. Stay informed. Also, you can’t take lightly what is happening in our world. More people are feeling that there is something unusual about the pandemic, and my advice; find out more.