I don’t think I’ve gone through a single day in the last month without having someone say, “I’m so done with this”. That pandemic fatigue, according to the World Health Organization, is “an expected and natural response to a prolonged public health crisis”.
The concerns of healthcare workers and governments are that it leads to the sense that how we act is irrelevant and it really doesn’t matter if we do or do not follow the protective measures we are advised to follow.
The comments following I’m so done with this range from descriptions of isolation and loneliness to uncertainty and fear, overall tiredness from being stretched in too many directions, and as we have seen play out, for some that becomes resentment and rebellion.
Over the last 9 months, it has become clear that the rhetoric “we are all in this together” is a partial truth. Throughout this pandemic, there has been and continues to be an expectation that we as individuals, organizations, and members of our society share the burden of responsibility for protecting one another from the contagion.
The reality is that our experience of it is unique and so are the consequences. The type and degree of long-term damage that many people, organizations and our society will suffer is a growing concern.