Even before the pandemic I was quite a recluse, and since then I've become very cautious about COVID transmission. I've caught it only once (that I know of) and my symptoms were minor, but my body is definitely different now. My heart beats faster and more irregularly, I get nerve pain in my neck sometimes, my lung capacity has decreased, and my legs feel weird in a vascular way. My memory has always been bad but it can't have helped. I don't want to catch it again, and frankly I can't bear the thought of infecting the elderly people that I work with. It's been hard to set boundaries with people about COVID so I've laid out my personal mitigation strategies below in the hopes that it might be easier to communicate with people. I really, really want to spend more time with more people, but I'm not willing to do that with people who don't respect my boundaries.

What I personally do to mitigate COVID transmission:

1. Wear an FFP2 mask everytime I'm outside, and avoid taking it off as much as possible
2. Use a mouthwash with CPC in it before and after I leave my flat
3. Use an LFT before I meet up with friends indoors/spend a long period of time together
4. Avoid crowded/poorly ventilated indoor events
5. Open up the windows in buses/trains when I board, and indoor spaces if possible
6. Use Viraleze before and after potential exposure
7. Ask my friends/people I'm going to spend time with to wear masks when we meet and test if at all possible (if I have tests around I offer them)