With Alberta’s government repealing the vaccine passport program and possibly the mask mandate come Mar. 1, one Calgary woman says her world is getting even smaller and wishes people calling for freedom would think about hers.
It’s been a long two years for Alyssa Denis who CityNews first spoke at the beginning of the pandemic.
Living with Lupus and, at that time, awaiting a delayed cancer surgery, she was told to stay home during the start of the pandemic.
“After my surgery, my mental health took a turn. In conjunction with the isolation and the pain, it’s been hard to keep going,” she explained.
She says it took a lot of time to feel comfortable being around people, saying she felt safe kayaking in the summer with some friends, knowing they were all outside and vaccinated.
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Once the Restrictions Exemption Program was introduced in September, it made her feel like she could get back on the sheet at the Garrison Curling Club and pursue one of her favourite pastimes: Curling.
”I knew the people there were of a like mind. They weren’t COVID deniers, they were vaxed and would wear masks. I knew the environment was as safe as possible, I could trust them.”
With the program now lifted, and the province aiming to lift the mask mandate in March, Denis worries about physical and mental health as her elderly parents who have their own health issues are her only source of interaction.
“My dad goes and gets the groceries. It makes me worry with them being out there once the mask mandate is lifted.”
Denis says she is the first person who would love for life to go back to normal, but she believes the province’s latest move is premature and she hopes that both [the] government and Albertans will think about people like herself during this pandemic.
“They are marching and protesting for freedom but only for them. Freedom for one isn’t freedom for all.”
