After a year of COVID-19 people are settling into making a change

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI)- It’s been a year since the first cases of Covid-19 were reported in the U.S. For some, it’s been the most challenging year of their lives, but the advancement of vaccines along with declining case numbers had shed some light on the situation.

Covid-19 case numbers once surged to levels beyond what anyone could imagine. Businesses shutting down, money is lost, and at-home quarantines became common for just about everyone, but finally, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

“It was very scary this time last year because nobody knew what Covid was,” said the president of Allegro Family Clinic Amy Bogue.

That fear has been eased for some from last year when people first realized the seriousness of the virus.

“I think we started seeing some of the seriousness of it. When you start to see people that you know getting it or we all may have known somebody that unfortunately passed away due to complications of that and I think we may need to get treatment for this,” said pharmacy manager of Allegro Plaza Hank Norwood.

Although people didn’t know the ins and outs of covid, Norwood felt they became more concerned about their health.

“We have medications now that we can use to treat that. We did see a lot of selling of over-the-counter items vitamin D, vitamin C, the zinc. I think we’ve had a good response to that I think that we have been able to handle it pretty well,” said Norwood.

More businesses continue to open their doors with safety guidelines that were set in place for covid, and these guidelines help fight off other viruses too.

“In our system, we only saw 8 flu cases in 2021 last year we saw over 600 so even some of the precautions that we’re taking have helped with other diseases just by taking the covid precautions,” said Bogue.

Covid and the flu tie in together, but covid protection has been vital in decreasing the number of cases.

“I think that there was a lot of fear last year and now we understand what it is. It’s very similarly transmitted like the flu and so these masks have really helped,” said Bogue.

Health care officials know that it’s a tricky time, but if you or someone you know feel sick, Bogue encourages you to continue reaching out.

“With the weather changing and spring coming you think it’s allergies, covid, or flu, but we have a test to tell you which one it is so if you have a question come to be seen by any clinic in town,” said Bogue.

More people have calmed their worries plus taken a closer look at their health more than ever before, and with vaccines becoming widely available both Bogue and Norwood are eager to see a return to normalcy soon.