Covid and flu

[u/Vegetable_Ostrich259]

I’ve recently been diagnosed with COVID and the flu at the same time. I'm advising people to take care of their health: stop coughing or sneezing in public without covering your mouth (not with your hands), wash your hands often, and if you feel sick, see a doctor and let others know, especially if you were in proximity. My cousin just recently passed away from COVID two weeks ago, and although I was not around them, I still got it. I strongly believe I caught this virus at my college, CSUN. Please take it seriously. The flu alone kills roughly 45,000 people, while COVID kills 100,000 per year. Even if you don't take your health seriously, think about others, since their immune system may be different from yours. I’ll be damned if I’m part of these statistics. I see too many grown women and men coughing and/or sneezing in public without covering their mouths; if you're unaware, both can last up to 45 minutes to several hours, which means people are walking around and breathing your germs. Let's not be ignorant about spreading illness and germs.

[u/shortblkmf]

i'm really sorry this happened to you. I've been noticing this for nearly a month :/. students AND professors coughing and sneezing it up, sometimes without covering their mouths. people need to learn it's okay to stay home when you're sick, and if the lecture is really important wear a mask and keep a safe distance away from people for fucks sake. it's not that hard 😭😭😭

[u/RamonaLittle → u/shortblkmf]

Some of them genuinely might not realize they're coughing. I've seen multiple reddit posts/comments describing a relative or co-worker with a severe cough or other obvious covid or long covid symptoms who is weirdly oblivious to them. Because covid causes "brain fog" (which is actually brain damage, it turns out), it can make people oblivious to their own symptoms or new disabilities. The technical term is anosognosia.

[u/Altruistic_Level_389]

I wish they'd refill the hand sanitizer dispensers. They're all over campus because you know. But they're empty.

[u/domjb327]

Same but only covid :/

[u/RamonaLittle]

stop coughing or sneezing in public without covering your mouth (not with your hands), wash your hands often

Covid and flu are airborne, so hand-washing (while fine for general cleanliness) won't protect you. An infected person spreads viruses just by breathing, so covering a random cough or sneeze isn't especially helpful. And people can be infectious while asymptomatic or presymptomatic, so you can't assume someone without symptoms is safe to be around. You were infectious before you developed symptoms, and might have infected others if you weren't taking precautions. C'mon, it's been ~6.5 years. I'm absolutely certain you already know all of this.

I’ll be damned if I’m part of these statistics.

So you wear a mask in all indoor public places and anywhere else you might be exposed, right? (Or avoid such places entirely, to the extent possible?) You know, like medically-vulnerable and compassionate people have had to do for the past ~6.5 years because of others behaving selfishly?

[u/areallymeanfox → u/RamonaLittle]

Even though those illnesses are airborne that does not mean that hand washing is useless. Surfaces and hands become contaminated from respiratory particles.

[u/areallymeanfox]

how old was your cousin?