Got a cough coming on? Don’t soldier on. For heaven’s sake, march homewards

As someone who had whooping cough as a child, and whose colds often turn to bronchitis and barks, I felt for him. I can’t hear coughing in the house without calling, “You poor thing darling.” (Inside, I am saying, “Go cough somewhere else”.)

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When did we revert to the old days of no masks, slightly soggy handshakes and taking our germs to work with us?

My son studying in Washington DC – ill recently with a bad cough – tells me that in the Trumpian era, wearing masks is seen as very suss.

Research just published in the US found compliance with wearing a face mask is associated with other protective behaviours, such as avoiding public places and believing that wearing a mask helps to keep oneself and others safe from COVID. There was more support among those who didn’t see mask-wearing as a political statement. Why did we change?

I loved the surgical mask when I had a sniffle. Only six months ago, it was still something you’d see being worn on public transport, and everyone had one in their bag just in case.

I love that my boss still urges anyone who sniffles or coughs to retire home to work. She’s the one who wears a mask on every trip on public transport.

She was appalled to see the 1985 ad by Codral urging people who are sick to “Soldier On” on a local billboard.

Don’t soldier on. March homewards, please.

MediaWeek reported the slogan was back, though it had been replaced during COVID by “Get Back To What Matters Most”.

NSW Health’s respiratory surveillance for the last week in May warned COVID-19 cases in hospitals were increasing, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases were up, along with admissions for bronchiolitis among young children, particularly infants.

On a work trip last month, where I was meeting at least four groups of new people a day, my hand was ground to a pulp. I wanted to suggest a simple wave. A kind pat on the upper arm. Even an affected hand on the heart or a little bow from the waist. Elbow bump anyone? Shaking hands has lost its gloss for me. And like the five-day return to the office, it won’t bounce back.

Julie Power is a senior reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.

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