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Opinion: If I was 20, I would totally be partying too…which is wrong

Metro Vancouver is seeing a surge of cases involving young people and the reaction from people 30 and over has hilariously involved collective amnesia. What I mean is that people my age forget what we were like at the age of 20.
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Metro Vancouver is seeing a surge of cases involving young people and the reaction from people 30 and over has hilariously involved collective amnesia.

What I mean is that people my age forget what we were like at the age of 20.

All over social media are stunned reactions from older folks wondering why young people have started to party during the COVID-19 pandemic – leading to a rise in cases.

I’ve had that same instinct too, but then I stop for a minute and remember what I was like at the age of 20.

Was I responsible? Well, sometimes. (I didn’t drink and drive.)

Did I listen to good advice? Not always.

Did I make questionable decisions because I was young and dumb? Often.

Did I feel invincible at that age? Yes, totally.

I add all that up and I could totally see myself being reckless and disregarding the rules when it comes to COVID-19. I could also see myself being whiny and selfish after being in lockdown for a few months and then being lured out by sunshine and the chance to be around women.

So let’s pump the brakes a little on the outrage about young folks. I spare my outrage for people older than 30 who should know better and who refuse to wear masks or stand on those bloody stickers in the grocery store.(Shame!)

Now, having said this, I’m not saying that it’s OK for young people to not follow COVID-19 safety advice. Far from it. This is reckless and idiotic behaviour that gets people killed, including themselves. My point is that I totally would have done the same thing at that age. 

And it really is reckless. And dangerous for young people.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, has detailed that young people suffer after contracting COVID-19. She said young people are telling of symptoms such as “fatigue – like difficulty even sitting up – profound fatigue that lasts for a long period of time.”

Meanwhile, for people who have pneumonias, longer-lasting symptoms have included difficulty breathing and shortness of breath that can “last for a long time,” she said, during last Thursday's COVID-19 media briefing.

There’s also a sub-group of people, more likely men than women – although Henry said the reasons for this aren’t completely understood – who have increased clotting in their blood which can lead to clotting of the arteries around the heart as well as heart attacks, challenges with brain injury or pulmonary embolism.

Some of those effects can happen “weeks later,” said Henry.

Young teenagers and young adults also aren't immune to longer-term impacts. There's a post-viral syndrome – seen in this demographic around the world – that can cause inflammation of the blood vessels, she said.

According to the U.S. Centres for Disease Control (CDC), MIS-C syndrome is a condition where body parts – such as the heart, lungs, kidneys, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs – can become inflamed.

The CDC notes that the syndrome has been seen in children.

While young people are more likely to have milder symptoms of COVID-19, some older patients in long-term care have also shown little to no symptoms at all, according to B.C.’s top doctor.

“We do know that younger people are very likely to have very mild illness,” said Henry.

“Having said that, we also found a very similar thing in elderly people, particularly our elders in long-term care – that sometimes they have very little to no symptoms at all, mostly things like fatigue, or they may not have had a fever, for example.

“So this virus has proven to be quite stealthy in that way, and that makes it a challenge for us. That’s why it’s so important that we reduce our potential for getting exposed in the first place.”

She also stressed the importance of getting tested, as people may not recognize they have symptoms of the virus.

“That’s why we’re saying, (any symptoms), go get tested, particularly if you’ve been at one of the exposure events, and people know who they are,” said Henry.

  • With files from Kirsten Clarke, Richmond News