Thread by @EladSharonMD

Not sure about everyone else, but I can feel the case counts rising all around me. Many more people I know are being exposed to #COVID19 or are testing positive themselves. This is probably in part due to changes in the weather in the Northern Hemisphere. This means that if (1/n)

you thought that your actions were keeping you safe before, you have to do more to keep yourself safe now. The case counts are indeed rising, which means that every single interaction that you have now is riskier than it was just a few weeks ago. The pandemic is worse now. (2/n)

Thanks to "Changing Baselines Syndrome" (@voxdotcom: vox.com/energy-and-env…), we aren't noticing how horrific our situation in the United States is becoming. Everyone is distracted by the presidential transition, the advent of new vaccines, and, just the holiday season. (3/n)

But, you have to be more vigilant now than ever before! The virus is everywhere, and it stays in aerosol form for longer in the cold/dry air of winter. We have known about this risk for a while now & are sleepwalking into a disaster. (@statnews: statnews.com/2020/10/21/cov…). (4/n)

Some people say the increasing case counts on "pandemic fatigue" & "holiday gatherings." I doubt it. Pandemic fatigue was probably with us since the first week of the pandemic. And there is always a reason to socialize. Problem is that in winter, these factors are riskier. (5/n)

The increased case counts mean that everything you do now is riskier. Every interaction with every other human is riskier, because more humans around you are infected. It's a "positive feedback loop of infection," but there is nothing positive about it. And the vaccines... (6/n)

Well, the two mRNA vaccines from @moderna_tx & @pfizer/@BioNTech_Group are great. And they might even get emergency approvals by @US_FDA very soon. But, not soon enough to prevent the nightmare that will be our coming winter. There aren't enough doses right now. (7/n)

As @NIAIDNews's #DrFauci said, "The Cavalry Is Coming," but it's not here yet. We need to be vigilant, to do more than we have before because the weather, the case counts, and the virus are against us. The only way to save lives this winter is to #AvoidCrowds, #WearMasks (8/n)

#WashHands, and #SociallyDistance. #FindNewWays to do things that you were doing before to be safer. Remember, you have a new enemy: Winter. And Winter Isn't Coming Any More, Winter is HERE! (9/n)

Is it a surprise that El Paso and New Mexico had horrific scenes over the past month, despite, at least in New Mexico's case, being exemplars of public health in the early months of the pandemic? washingtonpost.com/national/new-m… (10/n)

The same happened to the Dakotas, but the conventional wisdom was that that was somehow related to a motorcycle rally? I don't claim that was great, but the main issue is likely the weather. (11/n)

So, it's in our hands to make this better! Don't assume that you are doing everything right. We are all in this together, and we all need to decrease our risk together. Until effective vaccines can be widely administered to everyone, we won't have an acceptable ending. (12/n)

Take some action TODAY to make your daily life less risky now. We all have a certain risk tolerance. But, just remember, you have to alter your actions due to some factors outside of your control: the weather (cold, dry air), the increasing case counts, and #COVID19. (13/n)

We need to decide to be a little safer. Safer for you and safer for everyone else around you. You can save a life. It might be yours or that of someone you love, but we need to think differently or we will see way more death & tragedy than we need to this winter. (End)