Can we really go back to where we were?
11 March 2020, is the day that will be etched in the history books to come. This was the day when the World Health Organization declared that the world was in the trap of a worldwide pandemic and termed it to be caused by the ‘Corona Virus’ or the ‘Sars Cov-2’. In only a few weeks, this virus propagated like a chain. This name has almost filled up our ears with the news and all the mishappenings going in and around the Earth. With almost 324,646,291 people affected and 5,549,558 recorded deaths, the world stands in a very peculiar position with the cases rising as today.
The question is, will we ever be what we were? Will the world seem again as it was before Covid? Definitely, we are in a position where we can actually put the world into a pre-Covid world and a post-Covid world (which right now is just speculation and hope). Now almost 3 years into the lockdown (although less restricted now) the world is in a state of worry. Vaccines aren’t helping and this is a huge mark on the health care systems which failed miserably. Covid is a wake-up call to the government who were dormant till now. With this said, we will try to figure out what changes one saw in Covid and which of them are actually almost becoming a part of our life.
Changing wardrobe
A few things are considered an important part of your wardrobe. Prior to Covid, wallet, phone, and watch were something unforgettable before stepping out of the house. But, now you have two additions of a mask and a sanitizer. This has actually changed our inner planning system. This is slowly becoming a part of us.
Everybody now knows how important it is to wear a mask and have a sanitizer. There are many studies that expect this change to be unchanging. This is a small but crucial change. With multiple companies adding in the business world, masks have actually become a style statement. You can shop for a mask as cheap as Rupees 30 to as expensive as Rupees 11,12,26,500 or simply $1.5 million. We have a long way to go and see if this actually becomes a part of our lives or not, but for the present time, it is a crucial and integral part of our lives.
Declining Mental Health
Mental health issues are ringing alarm bell because they need to be addressed. Suicide is likely to become a more pressing concern as the pandemic spreads and has longer-term effects on the general population, the economy, and vulnerable groups,” according to David Gunnell, professor of epidemiology at the University of Bristol and head of the Bristol Suicide and Self-harm Research Group, and his research team who recently published their findings in The Lancet Psychiatry. Constant and long isolation has increased the mental traumas of the people.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, anxiety has increased 3 times what it was before Covid. This has led to an increase in depression about 4 times and a 14 % increase in alcohol consumption rate. The reason for the deteriorating mental states of people around the world is obscure but it is largely due to lack of interactions, hearing of infections and deaths, weakened brain state, lost jobs, and many more things. The after-effects of Covid which are now invisible and blurred are likely to increase and need to be addressed in a formal and more liberal manner.
Climate Change
When humans suffered and economies were shut-down, nature flourished at its best. With news about Delhi’s improving air quality with the lockdown, the people were happy and could actually breathe in the open air. Not only Delhi, the study conducted by A.G.U (American Geophysical Union) showed that lockdown also reduced the deforestation rates in the world, improved the air and water quality, and this was supported by clearer satellite images. But, are these premonitions of a climatically healthy future. No. Just as the governments started to loosen Covid curbs, the countries stood right there they were. This happiness of nature was short-lived because the air quality stands right where it stood bef0re everything was okay. You would be glad to know that the production of single-use plastic actually increased with the increase in the need for P.P.E kits by the doctors. But, all hope is not lost. Covid has shown us what we ought to have done to prevent us from being where we are today.
Changes in the medical sector
The medical sector has undergone drastic changes. The shortage of medical employees made governments actually recruit youngsters with less stringent terms into the medical sector. All is not good with our health system. The big countries like the U.S.A, China, and India suffered vulnerably at the hands of an invisible virus. The medical sector also saw cut-throat competition for vaccine building. Pharmaceuticals were in an actual tussle for the production of safe and effective vaccines and bringing them into the market. With this, a need was also felt by the companies for collaborations because now the need for collectivism and partnership was surging. In March, Pfizer announced a joint venture with BioNTech SE to develop and distribute BioNTech’s mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate BNT-162. This is one among the many examples of the companies which combined for the task of developing vaccines.
All has not been lost, there is surely a ray of hope. The administration and citizens need to come together for witnessing a change in the global health situation. Countries, instead of working separately, should come together for beating this virus because if even ‘One’ patient remains, it would be dangerous and the situation might turn to what it is today. The above-mentioned changes are both temporal and long-lasting and we have got a long time to actually see if some other thing gets itself added to this list.
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