These last couple of years have been horrendous for so many people. Many lives have been lost and many more are suffering in a variety of ways. People have lost their incomes. Mental health is at an all-time low. Education has suffered. Most health issues, other than COVID, and maybe already diagnosed Cancer, have seemed to take a back-burner, causing unknown suffering and deaths.

I know I haven’t been functioning well for quite some time. Because of my own regular health worries, COVID and worrying about the mental health of my family, my own mental health has taken a significant dive. I can’t focus and I have no interest in anything that I did before. I can spend hours, and hours, and hours, doing nothing other than perhaps playing a mindless game. Some may say it’s due to the COVID vaccine as I have had two, plus the booster. Some may say it’s due to the lockdowns and uncertainty. Others may say it’s still due to tick-borne diseases. At this point, there is probably no way to figure it out. You just have to ride the wave.

I’m seeing many family members going through their own mental and physical health issues. We don’t know what the cause of theirs are either and many doctors are so stressed and overworked due to COVID they no longer have the ability to deal with such issues.

I am afraid of COVID. I was born with many health issues and have experienced some over most of my life. My lungs are not strong and dealing with tick-borne diseases has shown me that I do not bounce back like some might. However, I also don’t like the present state of fear that many of us are living in, a lot of it with the help of mainstream media and social media. I think it’s time we learned to live with it, just like we do with the flu. The fact that there have been less cases of the flu since hand washing properly; keeping a reasonable distance from others; and staying home when sick, means, to me anyway, that many of us may not have been doing some of these things already, for whatever reason. The masks, of course, have no doubt helped as well even if it’s for no other reason than to keep people mindful of personal space.

Nova Scotia had been lucky, for the most part, during the early stages of the pandemic. Although there were many deaths, it could have been much worse. However, with the new variants, nothing we do seems to stop the spread and deaths are increasing. As well, vaccinated and unvaccinated are being pitted against one another, even when some of the unvaccinated have legitimate reasons for not wanting to take a chance with the vaccine. If in a place like Nova Scotia, where many have been vaccinated and follow restrictions, significant cases and deaths are still taking place, maybe it’s time to rethink what we are doing.

Trying to help people who are possibly dealing with tick-borne diseases prior to COVID was hard. Trying to help them during COVID is downright impossible. The majority of Lyme researchers have been absconded to COVID research. Same with many doctors, such as the doctor that was running the Winnipeg Tick Collaborative Care Service and those that were supposed to be working on Lyme disease initiatives here in Nova Scotia. Of course, people also cannot easily cross the border to obtain treatment as many Lyme patients have decided to forego the vaccine due to their ongoing health issues. Those already sick are getting sicker, and many more people are being bitten as they are being told to get outside and get fresh air, without any warnings about the hazards of ticks.

I apologize for rambling, without saying much at all, but that’s were my head is these days. Hopefully, as weather starts to improve, and I can get outside more, things will be better. Here’s hoping!

Stay safe folks, and keep an eye on your mental health.