You’ve just had one of those crazy weekends, bouncing around town, partying from night
until morning.
Oh man, did you sleep after that.
You get up not knowing what day it is, and turn on the television.
On the news what you see before you are segments of people packed into supermarkets emptying
the shelves.
The words at the bottom of the screen are: GLOBAL PANDEMIC: PUBLIC TOLD TO GO INTO SELF-QUARANTINE.”
Pandemic comes from the Greek word, “pandēmos.”
The ‘pan’ part means ‘all’ and the ‘demos’ part means ‘people’.
So, if something is a pandemic it has spread all over the place, and that can be quite
bad.
The Flu Pandemic of 1918 killed somewhere between 20 and 50 million people.
The “Black Death” pandemic in the 14th century took out somewhere between 75 and
200 million people, a huge chunk of the world’s population at the time.
We’re not trying to be fearmongers here, but if one day you in fact were told by your
government a pandemic was on its way, or already happening, and that you should prepare to
stay indoors, what should you do?
First, you are going to have to shop for these things.
It depends on what the pandemic is and how the disease spreads, but we will say it can’t
hurt to wear a face mask while you are out and about, but be aware that masks have different
ratings for how well they block particles.
In the US, a mask rated 95 means it removes 95% of all particles while a mask rated 100
blocks 99.97 of all particles.
There’s an additional letter ratings scale with N meaning not oil resistant, R being
resistant to oils, and P meaning it is oil proof.
So if you want to be as safe as possible, a mask with a rating of P-100 is likely to
be best for most diseases, though some people may find it difficult to breathe in them.
You might also want to carry around with you a bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Diseases spread different ways, so this information is generic.
Since the government has made this stern warning, we suggest when you are out you keep your
distance from other people.
That doesn’t mean creating hysteria by running away from people, but on your shopping spree
you might not want to shake hands too much or start going in for lots of hugs.
You should also try not to touch your nose, mouth, eyes, really your face at all, while
on this trip.
To be super-safe, when you get home get rid of the masks and the shopping bags and even
put your clothes into a plastic bag…and give those hands of yours a thorough wash
again.
Wash for at least 20 seconds under hot water.
Soap and water will work, and you can wipe with the sanitizer, too.
Some people believe Vodka can be used as a hand sanitizer, and it can be in a pinch,
but alcohol-based sanitizers are much stronger.
So don’t bother with the vodka and save it for a cocktail instead.
FOOD The first thing you’ll need is food.
How long will you stay indoors?
Let’s say two weeks, so it’s best to buy food that won’t perish quickly.
You could buy dried foods such as oats, pasta and rice.
Canned foods such as tuna, beans, soups, fruits, and vegetables.
Powdered milk and foods you can freeze are another good idea if you have the space.
Healthy food is better because this will help your immune system, so we suggest a balanced
diet, don’t load up your freezer with frozen pizzas and ice cream.
Though you should make sure you have something as a little treat, quarantine doesn’t mean
no fun.
Don’t forget that if you have pets, to make sure that they have enough food for a couple
of weeks as well.
This is not the 1300s and most of us today believe scientists and medical professionals
will be able to get things under control quite quickly.
But still, having two weeks’ worth of food on hand is never a bad idea.
We suggest you don’t buy more than you need.
Hoarding is not a good idea.
It can create panic and obviously people can lose out.
If they lose out, they are at risk, which puts more people at risk.
It might seem a good idea at the start to stockpile for a year, but doing that could
actually create a bigger problem.
Unlike during a major natural disaster, it’s highly unlikely there will be a water interruption
during a pandemic, but for peace of mind, buy enough bottled water for two weeks.
The suggested amount of water to have on hand is a gallon a day for each person.
If you live in a country where the tap water isn’t safe to drink, then it’s very important
you have enough water.
You may also want to buy water filters or water-purification tablets to make the tap
water safe.
Some people take medications that are required and could severely harm their health if not
taken.
If you’re diabetic or asthmatic for example, you are very aware of how important it is
to have some excess in case of shortages or supply problems.
So, we suggest if you take life-saving drugs then you stock up on those.
Then there are people who take strong pain medications or psychiatric drugs.
If you’ve been taking an opioid for a long time it’s not advisable to suddenly withdraw
from it.
This can be painful but also very dangerous, and even life threatening.
It’s the same with anxiety medications such as Valium (diazepam) or Xanax (Lorazepam).
Sudden withdrawal after long-term use can cause seizures and even death.
You also want to have a medical kit in your house if you are quarantined.
Put in it things like electrolytes and vitamins, a thermometer, and some medications for common
ailments like stomach cramps or colds.
Just the regular stuff you can buy over the counter.
You could also buy some aspirin or ibuprofen for fevers and aches.
Someone might cut themselves, so have some bandages and antibacterial ointments.
Obviously you can only take care of minor injuries.
If it’s serious, you’ll have to take that trip to the hospital.
If someone gets sick in your house this could be a problem because that person might already
have infected another person, but they also might not have.
We suggest taking that person to hospital, and if that is not possible, put them in a
separate room.
If you have to touch them, wear gloves and a mask and make sure they are wearing a mask.
Again, keeping washing those hands and getting rid of those masks.
You’ll also want to keep yourself and your house clean, so we suggest you buy things
such as disinfectants.
You might also want to get enough bathroom supplies, such as diapers for babies, toothpaste,
shampoo, feminine supplies and toilet paper.
Also buy things like laundry detergent and dishwashing liquid.
Again, we will stress, you don’t need to hoard a huge stockpile of these items, but
enough for a few weeks.
Two weeks can be a long time if you lose your glasses and have poor eyesight, so you might
want to have a spare pair at hand.
If you’re hard of hearing, buy extra hearing aid batteries.
If you have devices that run on batteries, buy extra batteries for those things.
It’s the same with something like a can opener.
What if that breaks and you’ve got stacks of canned food to eat.
Ok, there are ways of getting into cans, but having a spare can opener isn’t a bad idea.
If you’re a family you’re probably used to going nights on end with someone watching
TV, another person on their phone, and another person on their PlayStation, but two weeks
is a long time to spend together.
It would be a good opportunity to do some family things, such as playing card or board
games.
Two-weeks of family time could turn out to be a positive thing.
It might also be a good time to read a few books, or start meditating, or do some push-ups
and get fit.
Try to make the best out of this quarantine period.
We hope you don’t have to be quarantined, but at least now you know what you’ll need
if it does happen.
You know what else you could do during a quarantine period?
You could educate yourself with some of our videos.
In two weeks we think you could almost go through our entire catalogue, and we think
a good start would be a video like this one, “50 Insane Cold War Facts That Will Shock
You!”
If that doesn’t work for you, try this video…