The Coronavirus: Don't Touch Your Face!!

Wow!! What a difference a month makes!! In early February, I decided to take a few days vacation in New York. I hadn’t been to New York in a while and met up with some friends, to see some broadway shows….Hamilton, Moulin Rouge and a couple of others. Visited the 9/11 Memorial, some jazz clubs and ate at nice restaurants. I even had a moment or two to stop and write a blog about how absent the Coronavirus was from the streets of New York. I didn’t see people wearing masks or worrying too much yet. Several Days ago amongst all the school closings, March Madness cancellations and the N-95 Mask panic, Broadway had also closed. I reminded myself of how thankful I was that I got to see “Hamilton” in just a nick of time!! Everybody had seen “Hamilton,” and I was one of the last stragglers to catch it, before Broadway shut down. I will say this though, I thought that “Moulin Rouge” was better than “Hamilton.”

I guess the theme of today’s blog, is how unsuspectingly casual my mindset was only a month ago. The whole world seems to be shutting down almost overnight. And then there is the constant news stream of how to protect yourself from the Coronavirus. I’m not going to pretend to be any more knowledgeable on how to prepare for and stay healthy during this outbreak. Just like everybody else, I am watching the news, talking to friends, going to grocery stores and using Purell.

Amongst the many Coronavirus protect tips by health officials, was the assertion that everyone stop touching their face. I never realized how often I touched my face….or that other people touched their faces! Everywhere I look, people have this compulsion to touch their face. And being that I write a lot about dentists from a “Patient’s Point of View,” I think it would be safe to say, don’t put your hands in your mouth either. If nothing else, at least the N-95 Mask will prevent people from touching their faces and sticking their hands in their mouth. Stay safe out there….and Don’t Touch Your Face!!