September 28, 2020
crazy dreams, et al
Jamie and I lost our 14 year old dogs just about two years ago. Many of you knew them, Faye was the love of Jamie’s dog life and Ida Red, a Treeing Walker Coonhound, was the star of my crankie “Ida’s Great Adventure”. We have been waiting to get our next dog(s) but now may have to wait a while longer. One effect of the pandemic is the scarcity of dogs and cats to adopt from shelters. Now a study supports that having a pet can help ease the anxiety and loneliness of living in shutdown mode. Those of us with pets already knew that, didn’t we? And others without them also knew, which is we there are few pets available for adoption now. We will eventually find another companion, but it will be a while longer.
A couple more effects of the pandemic have been noted in the past couple weeks as well: people are having more vivid and anxious dreams. I certainly have and I know many of my friends have too. I dream about masks, whether I am wearing one or if I forgot mine or if other people are not wearing masks. I especially was upset when I dreamed that I infected Jamie. It felt so raw and real.
And what about hair? Many people are losing their hair. Often, after a shock to the body, such as pregnancy, illness, or surgery; hair follicles will shutdown to go into a resting phase. The hair falls out, often dramatically, and eventually begins to grow back after a while. It is called Telogen Effluvium. Not surprising that someone with COVID-19 might lose their hair due to this, but it is also happening in many others due to stress. The good news is that it should re-grow after a rest.
Wash your hands, cover your nose, keep safe six, and don’t worry, your hair will grow back.
Photo: Ida Red, the hound, in full bliss and Faye, the saddest, most neglected dog ever. Sigh, we miss them. Photo by Anita Schuneman
And finally, my caveat is that this is my experience and my opinions, which are subject to change as more information is available, and not related to the organization I work for. Thanks for reading.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/24/health/coronavirus-hair-loss-telogen-alopecia.html
https://betsybrownmd.substack.com/p/april-18-2020
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200926145210.htm pets
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200925113323.htm dreams