Social Bubbles Introduced In Melbourne
Despite making significant progress over the past month the Victorian government has announced a further 63听颁翱痴滨顿-19听cases overnight, and a further 5 deaths, bringing the state鈥檚 total number of fatalities to 666. With听苍别飞 daily infections remaining at this level聽Premier Daniel Andrews today announced a two-week extension to Melbourne鈥檚 current stage 4 lock down, however with some significant changes.
Effective from 11.59pm on September 13, the 8pm curfew will be extended to 9pm with the daily 别虫别谤肠颈蝉别听limit extended from one hour per day to two.
From September 28, subject to public health advice, public gatherings will increase to five people and schools will begin to reopen in stages. Outdoor pools will also reopen, and personal training sessions will resume with up to two people per trainer, per session.
Further easing鈥檚 of restrictions are not planned until October 26th and聽then again on November 23rd.
However, one of the most significant and most welcome announcements to come from Sunday afternoon’s press conference was the extension of social bubbles to includes individuals from single person households.
“The social bubbles to accommodate those who live on their own are in direct response to feedback we have had from those who have been isolated away from anyone else for a long period of time. We will create those social bubbles so that much like the way intimate partner arrangements work now singles and those who live alone will be able to partner up with somebody else and they will be able to visit each other,” Mr Andrews said.
For the LGBTQI community, where many individuals already face significant social isolation, this comes as welcome news聽Karen Field CEO of Drummond St Services told Star Observer.
鈥Since entering into stage 4 the impact on people’s mental health in particular has been unbelievable. We have had a trebling of those who have some form of suicidal ideation or poor mental health.
鈥Being able to set up some form of peer support from someone who can be inside your bubble is so vital to us being socially connected. It鈥s pretty tough when you lose not only your health supports but also social supports too.鈥
The 5km travel limit will not apply to travel bubbles between single person households, however, the 9pm curfew will and concerns surrounding how these new arrangements will be policed still remain.
鈥The one thing that is missing, in the surveillance and the policing of this is that it’s not just about police knocking on someone鈥檚 door聽but also about neighbours understanding that some people living alone need this kind of connection,鈥 Field explained.听鈥People need to hold compassion for one another and understanding the really tough run it is for some people.鈥
One such individual that understands all too well the impacts of COVID-19 and the challenges of social isolation, is 50-year-old- queer fashion designer Sprinkle Pier.
Pier 聽has faced significant challenges over the past year, both professionally and personally.
鈥Because people have been working from home (and wearing more casual clothing) for many months, they haven鈥檛 really spent money on the type of garments I sell. That definitely affected the cash flow,鈥 Pier told Star Observer.听“When masks became compulsory, I diversified my business and also started making them. That definitely helped a lot. But when the second lockdown happened those sales pretty much dried up.”
Last year, Pier鈥檚 long-term partner Holdin passed away. An event that Pier reflects upon by 补诲诲颈苍驳,听鈥I am quite accustomed to spending time alone since my partner passed away. We were together nearly three聽years, and we had a very deep connection, a soul connection. I almost feel their passing prepared me for this isolation.
鈥But then during this pandemic my 19-year-old cat, who was my companion also passed away. I never felt alone with her around, but since she has gone聽loneliness has definitely crept in.鈥
Upon hearing today鈥檚 announcements Pier concluded by saying, 鈥To be able to nominate a friend to hang out with will definitely change things for me, but I just need to work out who that person is going to be. I don鈥檛 really have one bestie. 滨迟鈥檒濒 be great to see someone, hang out and do fun stuff though. That鈥檚 for sure.
鈥Video chats are fine but it鈥檚 not the same as face-to-face.鈥
For those in Melbourne鈥檚 LGBTQI community looking for support during these times the recently launched Stay Homo campaign by Barba and Thorne Harbour, is a useful online tool. There you can find an extensive list of organisations continuing their support throughout the COVID-19 lockdowns.
For more info聽.