The slow return to normality after two years of pandemic

Now that COVID-19 infections are falling around the world, Emily Safrin did something she hadn’t dared to do for two years: she forgot her fears and went to a concert.

This restaurant waitress, who applied all three vaccines, was thinking of leaving her mask on. But when the regatonero Bad Bunny went on stage there was such a frenzy that he was taken out. Shortly afterward, he walked through a trendy Portland neighborhood with friends, without a mask.

Two years after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic, changing the world overnight, relief and hope grow after a prolonged period of loss, fear and uncertainty.

“Everyone was supposed to be vaccinated or have a negative test. I told myself, ‘fuck it, I’m going to enjoy life’”, Safrin recounted. “It was a bit strong, to be honest. But it felt really good to get a little bit of normalcy back.”

The world is finally getting rid of a wave of infections of the omicron variant two years after the start of the pandemic, which formally began on March 11, 2020, when the WHO made its announcement, informing about the seriousness of a threat which by then had wreaked havoc mostly in China and Italy.

Stock markets crashed, schools were closed, and people started wearing masks. Since then, more than six million people have died from the virus globally, and everyone’s life has been radically altered.

The emergence of a vaccine in December 2021 saved a number of lives, but generated political divisions, doubts and brought to light the inequalities in health systems, which prevented millions of people around the world from accessing the vaccine, prolonging the pandemic.

Things, however, are improving. In its most recent report, the WHO said infections and deaths are declining around the world. Only one region, the Western Pacific, is seeing increases in infections. In the Middle East and Africa, infections decreased by 46% and 40%, respectively.

Another silver lining: The wave of the contagious omicron and vaccines have made so many people protected against the coronavirus that any future outbreak is unlikely to wreak such havoc on society, experts say.

“It’s hard to use the word ‘normal’. I don’t know if we’ll ever really get back to normal. We adapt and move on”said Julie Kim, chief nurse at Providence St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, California, who is moved to remember the days when hospitals were overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, doctors and nurses were exhausted and could not they returned home for fear of carrying the virus.

Kim says that while medical staff are now better prepared to deal with the disease, many have been traumatized by the experiences of the past two years. “Many people find it difficult to deal with what we live”he stated.

Everywhere restrictions and orders to get vaccinated are being lifted. But the health authorities warn that we must not be careless.

Albert Ko, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the Yale School of Public Health, said new variants are still emerging and there’s no claiming victory. “The big question is, are they going to be as mild as the omicron or more severe?’ Unfortunately we don’t know that.”, he expressed.

Along with the infections, the demand for COVID tests is also falling. Jaclyn Chavira recalls the fear of people in lines to get tested, which reached thousands of people in Los Angeles at the end of 2020.

At the gigantic testing center built at Dodger Stadium, the lines of cars for their occupants to take the test reached two miles (more than three kilometers). “Now people don’t care so much anymoreChavira said.

Not everyone is ready to go back to normal. Amber Pierce, a Portland restaurant clerk, was out of work for nearly a year due to COVID-19 and was lucky not to get infected during a wave of infections at her job. A regular customer passed away from the virus.

She is still wearing the mask outside. “I want to make sure there are no new outbreaks now that people stop wearing masks and feel more confident.” he commented as he sanitized his hands. “It still makes me a little nervous” the virus, he added.