I shared a post earlier this week about how COVID19 spreads and credited it to a woman named Kat Storti. It got alot of attention and many folks wanted to share it but wanted her background before passing it on. It turns out that Storti didn't write it…only shared it herself. One of the readers of the blog tracked down the original author…a nurse from Oakland California named Kymberli Dawn Barker. She wrote a message for those who wanted to know how she came up with her original post…here it is…and I apologize for the confusion.
Here is the original post for those who didnt read it before….
“Feeling confused as to why Coronavirus is a bigger deal than Seasonal flu? Here it is in a nutshell. I hope this helps. Feel free to share this to others who don’t understand…
It has to do with RNA sequencing…. I.e. genetics.
Seasonal flu is an “all human virus”. The DNA/RNA chains that make up the virus are recognized by the human immune system. This means that your body has some immunity to it before it comes around each year… you get immunity two ways…through exposure to a virus, or by getting a flu shot.
Novel viruses, come from animals…. the WHO tracks novel viruses in animals, (sometimes for years watching for mutations). Usually these viruses only transfer from animal to animal (pigs in the case of H1N1) (birds in the case of the Spanish flu). But once, one of these animal viruses mutates, and starts to transfer from animals to humans… then it’s a problem, Why? Because we have no natural or acquired immunity.. the RNA sequencing of the genes inside the virus isn’t human, and the human immune system doesn’t recognize it so, we can’t fight it off.
Now…. sometimes, the mutation only allows transfer from animal to human, for years it’s only transmission is from an infected animal to a human before it finally mutates so that it can now transfer human to human… once that happens..we have a new contagion phase. And depending on the fashion of this new mutation, thats what decides how contagious, or how deadly it’s gonna be..
H1N1 was deadly….but it did not mutate in a way that was as deadly as the Spanish flu. It’s RNA was slower to mutate and it attacked its host differently, too.
Fast forward.
Now, here comes this Coronavirus… it existed in animals only, for nobody knows how long…but one day, at an animal market, in Wuhan China, in December 2019, it mutated and made the jump from animal to people. At first, only animals could give it to a person… But here is the scary part…. in just TWO WEEKS it mutated again and gained the ability to jump from human to human. Scientists call this quick ability, “slippery”
This Coronavirus, not being in any form a “human” virus (whereas we would all have some natural or acquired immunity). Took off like a rocket. And this was because, Humans have no known immunity…doctors have no known medicines for it.
And it just so happens that this particular mutated animal virus, changed itself in such a way the way that it causes great damage to human lungs..
That’s why Coronavirus is different from seasonal flu, or H1N1 or any other type of influenza…. this one is slippery AF. And it’s a lung eater…And, it’s already mutated AGAIN, so that we now have two strains to deal with, strain s, and strain L….which makes it twice as hard to develop a vaccine.
We really have no tools in our shed, with this. History has shown that fast and immediate closings of public places has helped in the past pandemics. Philadelphia and Baltimore were reluctant to close events in 1918 and they were the hardest hit in the US during the Spanish Flu.
Factoid: Henry VIII stayed in his room and allowed no one near him, till the Black Plague passed…(honestly…I understand him so much better now). Just like us, he had no tools in his shed, except social isolation…
And let me end by saying….right now it’s hitting older folks harder… but this genome is so slippery…if it mutates again (and it will). Who is to say, what it will do next.
Be smart folks… acting like you’re unafraid is so not sexy right now.
#flattenthecurve
. Stay home folks… and share this to those that just are not catching
And here is Kym Barker's addition to it for folks who want to know who she is..
“Because Mandy wanted to know who the heck I am… here was my answer:
Mandy Thomas Petrie I am the actual author, bad punctuation and all.
A few people have asked my credentials… where did I get this info, etc. etc. And…had I known the post would be shared so many times, I would have tried to answer that initially…But you see, Mandy, all I did with that post was take information given to us in CDC briefings and combine it with college level virology (common knowledge found in any textbook). I tried to write it in a way that could be understood, and relatable.
Often a doctor will give a patient a regimen to follow..using a lot of jargon that’s difficult for the patient to understand. I’ve had 30 years of practice, taking those regimens and re-wording them, so that my patient understands the logic behind the directions. Patients are more readily compliant with changing their lifestyle if they understand WHY they must change their lifestyle. Soooo, I bridge the gap, the best I can… it’s what nurses do. I’m not special.
Right now….Citizens of earth are being told that they must change their lifestyle (at least for awhile). Cancel events, school, work, sports, vacations….But there has been a huge absence of “relatable” information as to WHY we must change. The news gives bits here, pieces there…politicians are behind the curve…researchers inundate us with jargon that makes us tune out. Sooo….I did what EVERY nurse does several times in the course of their day. I merely endeavored to bridge the gap. I layed the COVID problem out, from A-B, in a story format, minus the jargon, and hoped people would want to comply because I gave them understanding.
And, I guess it’s working, based on the interest in my posts.
All I have ever said is…..I just hope it helps.
“Pt updated on POC, Pt demonstrated understanding through compliance with care”.
(That’s a little joke for all the RNs out there )
Stay healthy “-Kymberli Dawn Barker.
There it is…take it or leave it…believe it or don't…it's up to you.
Bosch is back! The new season begins in April.
Stevens Point native Cole Caufield has told Badgers coach Tony Granato that he's planning on returning for a second season at Wisconsin.
Guitarist Paul Kossoff died on this date in 1976 on a plane from London to New York at the age of 26. He had played in the band Free and left to start a band called Back Street Crawler.
Here is a double Lp released in 1977 called Koss
Quotes Of The Day
“.@SenRonJohnson was one of eight US senators to oppose the bill, which seeks to provide sick leave, unemployment benefits, free testing for the virus and more. It now heads to President Trump.”-Briana Kelly
https://twitter.com/SenatePress/status/12403699659…
“Notably, Germany – the country which offered Trump test kits in February, but he said no – has a 0.23% mortality rate. The US is at 1.57%. Trump repaid German generosity by trying to buy-in a German co developing a vaccine, to manufacture it exclusively for the US.”-Amy Siskind
“Funny how the people who want more God in govt keep voting for guys who worship the Golden Calf.”-John Fugelsang
“Everyone is suddenly realizing that teachers are professionals and public schools are foundational structures in a free society. It’s heartbreaking it has taken a viral pandemic for this realization.”-Dr. Adam Jordan
“My God… Trump ends his press conference by saying no offer was made to the U.S. to have the WHO-certified test, says any such news of that is fake, and then adds that the WHO test — the GOLD STANDARD TEST FOR COVID19 is a “bad test.” This is straight-up gaslighting propaganda.”-Joy Reid
“So which part was the most presidential? When he lied about always knowing it was a pandemic or the part where he lied about the WHO test kits?”-Adam Parkomenko
This is sarcasm…I'm just sorry I have to explain that
“Let me be clear: We're not doing no-strings-attached bailouts that enrich shareholders or pay CEO bonuses. Period.”-Elizabeth Warren
