Mike Hoerger, PhD MSCR MBA Profile picture
Dec 20, 2023 10 tweets 8 min read Read on X
As a clinical health psychologist, I notice that many people are using psychological defense mechanisms to downplay the risk of COVID.

These are my Top 7 examples:

🧵 Top 7 Psychological Defense Mechanisms Used to Downplay COVID
#1 – Denial – Pretending a problem does not exist to provide artificial relief from anxiety.

Examples:

“During COVID” or “During the pandemic” (past tense)

“The pandemic is over”

“Covid is mild”

“It’s gotten milder”

“Covid is now like a cold or the flu”

“Masks don’t work anyway”

“Covid is NOT airborne”

“Pandemic of the unvaccinated”

“Schools are safe”

“Children don’t transmit COVID”

“Covid is mild in young people”

“Summer flu”

“I’m sick but it’s not Covid”

Taking a rapid test only once

Using self-reported case estimates (25x underestimate) rather than wastewater-derived case estimation

Using hospitalization capacity estimates to enact public health precautions (lagging indicator)

Citing mortality estimates rather than excess mortality estimates. Citing excess mortality without adjusting for survivorship bias.This is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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#2 – Projection – When someone takes what they are feeling and attempts to put it on someone else to artificially reduce their own anxiety.

Examples:

“Stop living in fear.” (the attacker is living in fear)

“You can take your mask off.” (they are insecure about being unmasked themselves)

“When are you going to stop masking?”

“You can’t live in fear forever.”This is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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#3 – Displacement – When someone takes their pandemic anxiety and redirects their discomfort toward someone or something else.

Examples:

Angry, seemingly inexplicable outbursts by co-workers, strangers, or family

White affluent people caring less about the pandemic after learning that it disproportionately affects lower-socioeconomic status people of color

Scapegoating based on vaccination status, masking behavior, etc.

“Pandemic of the unvaccinated”

Vax and relax

“How many of them were vaccinated?” (troll comment on Covid deaths or long Covid)

Redirecting anxiety about mitigating a highly-contagious airborne virus by encouraging people to do simple ineffective mitigation like handwashing

“You do you” (complainers are the problem, not Covid)

Telling people to get vaccinated or take other precautions against the flu or RSV but not mentioning Covid

Parents artificially reducing their own anxiety by placing children in poorly mitigated environments

Clinicians artificially reducing their own anxiety by placing patients in poorly mitigated environments

Housework to distract from stress

Peer pressure not to maskThis is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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#4 – Compartmentalization – Holding two conflicting ideas or behaviors, such as caution and incaution, rather than dealing with the anxiety evoked by considering the incautious behaviors more deeply (hypocrisy)

Hospitals and clinicians claim to value health/safety but then don’t require universal precautions

Public health officials claim to value evidence but then give non-evidence based advice (handwashing over masking), obscure or use low-value data over high-quality data (self-reported case counts over wastewater), etc.

Getting a flu vaccine but not a Covid vaccine

Interviewing long Covid experts who recommend masking in indoor public spaces but then going to Applebee’s

Masking in one potentially risky setting (grocery store) but not masking in another similar or more-risky setting (classroom)

Infectious disease conference where people are unmasked

Long Covid and other patient-advocacy meetings where only half the people mask

In-person only EDI events

Not testing because it’s just family

Mask breaksThis is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
#5 – Reaction formation – expressing artificial positive feelings when actually experiencing anxiety

“It’s good I got my infection out of the way before the holidays”

“I had Covid but it was mild”

Anything quoted in Dr. Jonathan Howard’s book, “We Want Them Infected: How the Failed Quest for Herd Immunity Led Doctors to Embrace Anti-Vaccine Movement”

Herd immunity (infections help)

Hybrid immunity (infections help)

“It’s okay because I was recently vaccinated”

“Omicron is milder”

“Textbook virus”

“Building immunity”This is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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#6 – Rationalization – Artificially reducing Covid anxiety through a weak justification.

Examples:

“I didn’t mask but I used nasal spray”

“I don’t need to mask because I was recently vaccinated”

“It finally got me.”

“You’re going to get Covid again and again and again over your life.”

“It’s not Covid because I don’t have a sore throat.”

“It’s not Covid because I took a rapid test 3 days ago.”

“It’s not Covid because I’m vaccinated.”

“Airplanes have excellent ventilation.”

“I’ve had Covid three times. It’s mild.”

“Verily was cheaper.”

“Nobody else is masking.”

“Nobody else is testing.”

“My roommates don’t take any precautions, so there’s no point in me either.”

“I have a large family, so there’s no point in taking precautions.”

Surgical masks (they are actual “procedure masks,” by the way)

Various pseudo-scientific treatments used by the left and right

Handwashing as the primary Covid public health recommendation

Droplet transmission as a thing

Public health guidance that begins with “data shows” (sic)

Risk maps that never turn deep red

5 expired rapid tests

“Masks recommended” instead of universal precautions

“Seasonal”This is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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#7 – Intellectualization – using extensive cognitive arguments to artificially circumvent Covid anxiety

Examples:

Unending threads to justify indoor dining

Data-rich public health dashboards that use low-quality metrics and/or don’t change public health recommendations as risk increases

The entire justification for “off-ramps”

Oster, Wen, Prasad

Schools denying air cleaners because it “could make children anxious”

Schools not rapid testing this surge because it “could make children anxious”

The mental gymnastics underlying the rationales for who can get vaccinated, how frequently, or with what brand

Service workers told not to mask because it could make clients uncomfortable

“What comorbidities did they have?”

“The vulnerable will fall by the wayside”

Musicians and others holding large indoor events

5-day isolation periodsThis is from a psychology book by Nancy McWilliams. I will post a link to a PDF of newer edition of the full book at the end of the thread. If someone has a better "ALT" trick, please educate me on this one.
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Here's a link to the full book, a newer edition than what I own. The information on defense mechanisms begins on textbook page 100.

Please let me know if there's a more accessible alt-text solution that you would prefer so I can do better next time.
isotis.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/mcwill…

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More from @michael_hoerger

Mar 31
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PMC Dashboard, March 31, 2025 (U.S.)

🔹800-1,400 deaths expected to result from this week's infections (new stat, see video next Tweet)
🔹100,000+ Long Covid conditions to result from this week's infections
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PMC Dashboard, March 31, 2025 (U.S.)

This video explains U.S. COVID excess death statistics, which we have incorporated into the dashboard.

🧵3 of 5
PMC Dashboard, March 31, 2025 (U.S.)

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Check local dashboards, and time events accordingly.Forecast graph, described in post
Read 5 tweets
Mar 31
PMC Update on #ExcessDeaths

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🔥COVID deaths expected to be on par with lung cancer in the U.S. in 2025
🔥Death data added to the dashboard
2) Full video links to learn more about COVID #ExcessDeaths in the U.S.

Dashboard page (presently featured): pmc19.com/data
Downloadable file: pmc19.com/data/deaths033…
Veed platform: veed.io/view/558039f4-…
3) The new #ExcessDeath statistics build on what we described in the 5-year pandemic anniversary video.

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Read 6 tweets
Mar 24
PMC Dashboard, Mar 24, 2025 (U.S.)
🧵1/5

🔹3 million new weekly infections in a persistent "lull" of substantial transmission
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🔹1 in 3 regions in high/very high transmission (16 states and DC)Heat map of transmission, described in Tweet
PMC Dashboard, Mar 24, 2025 (U.S.)
🧵2/5

We have had a steady state of about a half million infections the past several weeks. That's over 50 million estimated infections so far in 2025.

In a room of 40-50 people, there's a 1-in-3 chance of exposure if no testing/isolation.Current Levels for Mar 24, 2025	 % of the Population Infectious	 0.9% (1 in 107)	 New Daily Infections	 446000	 New Weekly Infections	 3122000	 Resulting Weekly Long COVID Cases	 156,000 to 624,000	 	 Monthly Forecast	 Average % of the Population Infectious	 1.0% (1 in 96)	 Average New Daily Infections	 496566.6667	 New Infections During the Next Month	 14897000	 Resulting Monthly Long COVID Cases	 745,000 to 2,979,000	 	 Running Totals	 Infections Nationwide in 2025	 50757000	 Average Number of Infections	 Per Person All-Time, U.S.	 3.708526284	 	 How Does Risk Increase with More Social Co...
PMC Dashboard, Mar 24, 2025 (U.S.)
🧵3/5

There's a good chance of steady transmission the next month. Often, we'd head into a low lull about now. BUT there are no universal precautions, immunity is waning from the fall & winter 2023-24, & viral evolution looks less 'lucky.'Middle forecast shows 400-600k daily infections.
Read 5 tweets
Mar 11
1) 5-yr Anniversary of the WHO Pandemic Declaration

🔥10 waves
🔥Covid mortality rivals lung cancer
🔥8 infections/person by 2030
🔥Long Covid as catastrophic
🔥Death trajectories becoming complex
🔥"During Covid" as anti-science rhetoric
🔥Serious ppl take Covid seriously
🧵
2) Wastewater-derived estimates of case rates show international consensus 20-26% of populations got Covid during the peak 2 months of the 2023-24 winter wave in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.
3) The ratio of reported cases versus true cases has remained consistent, demonstrating the validity of wastewater-derived estimates. True cases are 15-30x reported cases, a consistent ratio. There are no examples demonstrating low case rates.
Read 25 tweets
Feb 26
1) Mardi Gras 2020 was 5 years ago today. ⚜️

It was before the pandemic declaration, before the federal government recommended masking.

COVlD spread quickly through New Orleans, leading to one of the highest mortality rates per capita in the U.S.... Timeline showing Mardi Gras 2020 just 4 days before the first known reported death of C19 in the U.S.  Note. "Peak" diagnoses refers to the peak of the 1st wave.
2) New Orleans service workers were disproportionately hit by the early pandemic. Many died. Many developed #LongCOVID at the time or have now through repeat infections. Many have switched to other sectors....

3) The sad fact is that many service workers are continuing to get #LongCOVID through repeat infections today because the pandemic is ongoing and many restaurants have high occupant density and horrendous air quality....

Read 4 tweets
Feb 17
1) PMC COVlD Dashboard, Feb 17, 2025 (U.S.)

🔥1 in 72 actively infectious
🔥Sustained high transmission
🔥30 states in high/very high transmission (CDC)
🔥3x the transmission of Feb 2021
🔥668,000 daily infections
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2) PMC COVlD Dashboard, Feb 17, 2025 (U.S.)

This is a mid-sized wave, meaning substantial transmission. Notice that transmission remains steady at high rates.

Expect steady or slightly declining transmission, unless the real-time data are retroactively corrected.Two graphs, showing year-over-year transmission and the forecast, summarized in the post.
3) PMC COVlD Dashboard, Feb 17, 2025 (U.S.)

Notice that 30 states remain in high/very high transmission, per CDC categories.

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Read 5 tweets

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