What Isolation Can Teach Us About Our Future

I broke out in hives yesterday. They started in just a few spots, then came later in large Jackson Pollock-like splashes of red all over my back and arms. I’ve never experienced anything like it. So, of course, I called the doctor.

The nurse who answered the call told me that the clinic was closed due to the coronavirus, and asked if I had set up my virtual account with my healthcare system. I sheepishly told her I hadn’t bothered. If I was willing, she explained, the doctor would be able to see me in one hour, virtually, on my iPad. I quickly agreed. It took me 10 minutes to download the app, find my password, sign in, and click through all the approvals to get ready for the appointment. Simple.

Sure enough, at the scheduled time, my doctor showed up on one half of my tablet and there I was on the other, contorting my body to show him the angry splotches. Turns out it was his first virtual medical appointment, too. “I had one scheduled earlier, but the patient couldn’t get his video to work,” he explained. In other words, the normal process of adjustment.

We talked and he explained what he thought caused the hives – I likely got into some mold or another allergen while raking out my flower beds on Wednesday night -- and he told me how to treat the symptoms. It couldn’t have been easier.

I imagine my experience was pretty similar to that of our Egoscue postural therapy clients who have been asked to move their appointments to our eTherapy option: Initial reluctance followed by grudging compliance, then sheer delight when they experience the same benefit as in-person therapy without the need to leave their homes.

In my case, I should have downloaded the telehealth option earlier, but sometimes it takes extreme times to force us into new habits. Necessity is the mother of invention, as the saying goes.

When the coronavirus passes—and it will—I’m sure I’ll handle as many doctor visits this way as possible, even though I understand it has some limitations. For example, the system can’t take my vitals (yet), and there will be times I'll want to see a doc in person.

But the experience leads me to wonder how many of the lifestyle adjustments we’ve made in the last month to limit our risk of infection will continue when this crisis is over.

Will more of us be encouraged to work from home by our employers? Will more of us want to work from home? Will we continue to have meals and groceries delivered? Will we all cook and bake more often? Read more books and watch less mindless TV? Play board games? Home-school, or maybe even become fanatic boosters of our local teachers after trying to home-school? Go to college online? We'll see.

The loss of life due to the coronavirus is heart-breaking, and we've all been changed forever by the pandemic of 2020. But I know that when this is over we’ll be better prepared for the future no matter what it brings. As people, and as a country.