New: for this latest Dilemmas column, we took on the question of whether it's truly safe to take a walk. If you think the answer is simple or easy, read on (thread) nyti.ms/2WMFacA
The outdoors is becoming contested ground. Parks and trails in the US are being closed due to overcrowding. In France you can only exercise for one hour, alone, with a permission form. India’s prime minister just told 1.3 billion (!) people to stay indoors.
Sure, there are people still shamelessly congregating, but there are also a lot of people like 77 year old Barrie Motola, living in a one room studio, terrified to go outdoors.
The brutal truth: unless you live in a very remote area with no cases, you raise your risk every time you go outside. “This virus won’t infect you if it never meets you,” said Dr. Craig Spencer of Columbia. (Trust him, he had Ebola in 2014.)
But when we asked docs and scientists on the front lines whether Barrie should continue her walks, even in virus-stricken Manhattan, every single one of them said yes.
For mental health. Because she’s taking precautions. Because if rules are too difficult to follow they won’t be followed. (AIDS was stemmed by introducing tolerable rules-- safer sex-- not by banning sex.)
In fact, walks and runs have become psychological lifelines for some of the docs and scientists who are fighting the spread of this disease.
Dr. Spencer, the one who had Ebola, now spends his days treating Covid-19 patients in the Columbia ER. He comes home at night, laces up his sneakers, and runs and runs. It’s one of the only things that helps, he says.
Same for Amandine Gable, a scientist who co-authored last week's now-famous paper about how the virus lingers in air. She walks every day. The 6 ft rule is challenging, she said, and if someone crosses her path, she does not panic.
Please send us other Covid dilemmas, especially about the human side of dealing with this mess, at dilemmas@nytimes.com. We’ll use every reporting tool we have to get you answers.
