Welcome to 2022
If you want to skip the pandemic information that follows please do not skip Valery Szarek’s powerful poem “The Sky Sings” at the end of this post.
temporary Changes for in-office appointments
We are adapting, once again, to the changing landscape of the coronavirus pandemic. In-office changes include:
For all routine blood testing, patient orders will be sent to Labcorp where you can use any convenient location.
N95 masks(preferred) or surgical masks are required for all other in-office services. Masks will be available for purchase.
IV patients will need to keep their masks on at all times. In other words, no eating and drinking during IVs. Please be prepared for this.
You will note our pre-entry station and review of precautions prior to entry. Please sign and present this form on entry.
Symptomatic patients with ANY cold or flu symptoms will need to do reschedule for in-person appointments.
Here is what we know about the
Omicron variant:
Remarkably more contagious. It likely has a shorter incubation period, produces more viruses quicker, and infects and spreads in asymptomatic people more often. Omicron's R0 value is about 2.5. Meaning that it spreads to 2.5 people from every infected person.
(This is similar to earlier variants, however, omicron does it at breakneck speed.)
The silver lining may be that the Omicron wave may be shorter than previous variants. In South Africa, where the variant originated they are already seeing a steep decline in their infections. Their wave start to finish is about 2 months, peaking at 4 weeks.
A shorter period of contagion with a shorter quarantine period. Omicron creates a less severe illness in general. HOWEVER, omicron infects so many more people it is still swamping hospitals AND leading to more deaths. South Africa’s death toll from Omicron is still rising even when the infection rate is dropping. This is because many patients who will die from omicron may take 3-6 weeks before succumbing.
We will likely peak our wave in the next two weeks. Therefore keep your social interactions to a minimum, wear a mask, preferably an N95 mask, physically distance, test often, and get your booster shot if you haven’t. Don’t expose others if you have even mild symptoms.
Symptoms for omicron generally overlap with both cold and flu symptoms. We, therefore, have no symptom that reliably indicates an omicron infection.
Home tests (antigen tests) seem to be less sensitive though they still are an important way to limit exposures. The bigger problem with home testing is actually the limited supply.
Treatment for omicron now includes oral medication, Pfizer’s Plaxcovid a ten-day course. We are actively trying to find out just how this medication is distributed by the Colorado Department of Health. Getting a prescription will require a positive test, having a risk factor for severe COVID19, and must be started within 5 days of onset of symptoms. Note that only 2 of the 4 monoclonal antibody treatments work for Omicron infections.
Helios has a supplement program for those who are symptomatic. Please contact us as soon as you know you have COVID19 as our latest iteration of immune and antiviral support blends Traditional Chinese herbs with Nutritional Medicine.
Marshall Fires
We are challenged swiftly this new year with the vastly more contagious omicron variant and the devastating firestorm in Marshall, Superior, and Louisville. There is an overwhelming amount of distressing news these days. It leads us to an unsettling forecast for 2022. These times challenge us to be more forgiving, more generous, more patient, more gracious, and in connection with others more than ever. We need to express and receive this heart-driven part of our humanity these days to push back on the forces that drive us apart. What is certain is that we will manage so much better together than separately.
Our hearts go out to all of the families impacted by the fire and we will be collecting appropriate donations at Helios. We will transfer all donations to The YMCA of Northern Colorado.
(They are requesting blankets, pillows, dog and cat food)
We are also offering 50% off Helios services for first responders and volunteers who had respiratory or other health problems following the fires.
The Sky Sings
“The sky sings
me home
where my Grandmother’s bones
lace my own marrow
Ash on my fingers
soft from last night’s fire
Soft from conjuring stars
mapping home
Home - not like the place
to return to after
My skin lays down
But that resonant river
that traces my limbs
Where I’m rooted
where I remember myself, whole
Connected, powerful
able to do more than survive
A stone from the path
asks me for a carry
We share a walk for awhile
I ask this elder brother
how to get home
How to remember
myself whole
I ask if they will remember
for me and seed my dreams
So I never forget anymore
Brother tells me forgetting
is the game
Survival, the map
of losing and finding
So our hearts can crack
deeper and deeper
Like stones in a sweat lodge
glowing red -
Cold water striking their flesh
Their hearts burst
offering the way
To let go
and fall, home. Again.
Every prayer should end
in again.
The soft ash on my fingertips, again
May I remember to look deep
into the night sky, again
May I sing and write poems and light
sage in the mornings, again
May I remember myself whole, again
May I say thank-you
even before please
May I wake up knowing
May I seed my bright path
from end to beginning
May I remember the magic
in everything, again”