(reminder: these are my own takes; also, I’m not a medical provider, I’m just someone trained in public health who reads a lot of public health journals)

Question: Am I allowed to go outside and run to workout? Like is that bad form for social distancing?

Answer: YES, get outside and take a walk and go for a run! Enjoy nature! Be good to yourself physically. You mentally and emotionally need it! And don’t worry, you are not putting anyone at risk. Social distancing==> Nature integrating! [only caveat: no marathons as it’s too many people too close together]

Question: How long do we think humans and the economy can continue this? And if/when we go back to normal, won’t infections peak again?

Answer: Good, depressing question. Clearly, this thing not only has terrible health impacts, but unknown social impacts and devastating economic impacts. And the US has managed to bungle most of the key pieces of good public health practice — e.g. rapid testing of suspected cases, clear public health messaging from the outset, and specific requests made of individuals to take action to protect themselves and others. Singapore seems to be a model country in this respect, having learned lessons from previous outbreaks to squash the current one. I suppose we can look to other countries and historic examples to understand how long we can continue this and how we can maintain our sanity in the process. Coming together to sing Rihanna out our windows sounds like a good plan, even if it’s fake. Using our time at home to think deep thoughts and work out creative ideas a la Isaac Newton is a good way to keep social blues away. But obviously, our massive self-quarantine/social distancing response to COVID-19 has psychological ramifications. A recent paper in Lancet shares how to address psychological impact of quarantine, and I admit, it’s all basically stuff you’d already assume — good communication, keeping time in quarantine as short as possible, ensuring adequate supplies, etc. As to getting back to normal, yes, COVID-19 may come back. Right now, we’re giving ourselves time to prepare so that when life returns to normal and COVID-19 does come back, we can quickly detect it and respond before it has the opportunity to move through communities at exponential speed. We’re also giving ourselves time to develop effective treatments and vaccines. [And if you aren’t up-to-date on existing vaccines, get up to date! Go get your flu shot!] After things have returned to “normal” and COVID-19 does return, our systems will be far better prepared to handle it and fewer of us will be at risk. Now let’s get to work (from home) on economic stimulus!