What it was like to live through the 1918 "Spanish" flu pandemic - What it was like to live through the 1918 "Spanish" flu pandemic

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What it was like to live through the 1918 "Spanish" flu pandemic -

When you look around at the masked faces and non-stop headlines, it’s easy to feel like we are living a moment unlike any other. The world’s governments’ varied responses to crisis and the radical changes in our day-to-day lives seem unprecedented, but, in fact, the world underwent this fearful shift about one century ago.

The 1918 flu pandemic, also known as the “Spanish flu,” took everyone by surprise with its deadly and fast-spreading disease. In total, it lasted about a year and infected an estimated 500 million people—about a quarter of the world's population at the time—and resulted in about 50 million deaths across the globe. But all of that was not for nothing, and we can use that experience to help us now. Click through to see what it was like to live through the 1918 flu.

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The first confirmed case -

Just over a century ago, in March 1918, the first case was confirmed. Though there isn't a consensus on where it came from, it is largely believed to have been spread via troop movements during WWI.

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Where it got its "Spanish flu" nickname -

During WWI, early reports of the illness in Germany, the UK, France, and the US were censored to maintain morale, but papers were free to report on the illness in neutral Spain, which created a false impression that Spain was especially hard hit.

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Events and gatherings were canceled - After the global gravity became apparent, dance halls and movie theaters closed in some cities, and large events were canceled to prevent people from spreading the virus.

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Masks mandatory for public transportation -

Streetcar conductors in some cities had the right to deny entry to commuters who were not wearing a mask.

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Masks weren’t that effective - Masks were largely enforced. Gauze masks, which some people soaked in camphor for what they believed was added protection, were everywhere during the pandemic.

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Makeshift hospitals popped up everywhere -

The exponential rise of cases overwhelmed hospitals, so communities erected makeshift hospitals, like this tented establishment.

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Makeshift hospitals popped up everywhere -

Many public buildings and private residences were also converted to help fight the virus.

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Patients were medicated with whiskey and champagne - Due to the lack of knowledge and resources regarding the virus, supportive care for patients reportedly included alcohol. Doctors gave patients sips of champagne to help with nausea, and one Chicago nurse said there were just too many patients so they could only offer a little hot toddy to each.

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Gargling to fight the flu -

As protection against the influenza virus, men gargled with salt and water, thought to be a preventative measure. To this day, people believe this now-debunked myth.

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Air wards off influenza? -

In this slightly misguided effort, women from the Department of War took 15-minute walks to breathe in fresh air every morning and night to ward off the virus. However, they did it in big crowds.

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Court held outdoors -

Court in San Francisco was held outdoors in a park due to the pandemic.

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Isolation and quarantine -

Warehouses were converted to isolate and quarantine those with the virus, and thereby contain it.

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Packed like sardines -

Patients’ beds were alternately reversed so that the breath of one patient would not be directed toward the face of another.

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Communities relied on volunteer nurses -

Since so many doctors had been recruited for the war, cities recruited volunteer nurses. Some desperate people reportedly abducted nurses and demanded they care for family members.

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Enrolling more nurses -

Disheartened women gathered to enroll more nurses during the pandemic and do the brave work of taking care of patients. 

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Not allowed to spit on the sidewalk -

This was sometimes enforced among other instructions, which included using a handkerchief to cover coughs and sneezes, avoiding crowds, not using common towels, and not doing anything too tiring. 

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Members of society did what they could -

Philadelphia society matron Mrs. JL Ackerson used her automobile to serve as a chauffeur for Fleet Hospital during the outbreak.

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Working from home wasn't really an option -

Most people did not have the ability to work from home as we do today, so they were forced to go into offices, some of which staggered work hours in an effort to slightly isolate workers.

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Praying for health -

At least today we're quicker to the point of staying inside, unlike this San Francisco congregation praying on the steps of the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption, where they gathered in large numbers to hear mass.

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Advised to keep windows open -

Getting air was a large part of the advice given to combat the influenza. 

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The funeral industry couldn’t keep up -

The sheer scale and swiftness of the pandemic meant communities were overwhelmed by the body count. Morgues were so over capacity that some families kept the deceased in their homes until their remains could be collected, and some undertakers resorted to using packing crates in the absence of coffins. 

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Making sense of the madness -

There were theories that people of color were less susceptible to the flu. However, biologically the virus does not discriminate. 

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Surprisingly hit young adults hard -

The flu is supposed to affect the elderly and children hardest, but 1918’s malnourishment, overcrowded hospitals, and poor hygiene reportedly promoted bacterial superinfection, which killed most of the victims.

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A "flu mask" -

In the reported view of one official of the New York Health Board, it is "better [to be] ridiculous, than dead."

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Making masks for soldiers -

Volunteers worked tirelessly to hand-make masks for soldiers.

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Illustrations of isolation -

The caption below reads, "The experts say in effect: 'Don't talk to anyone, don't go near anyone, and you are safe!' No doubt. But is not this a little difficult."

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Society became more individualistic -

One survivor recounted that society had shifted after the pandemic, seeing as there were no more gatherings at school or church or with family, and the fear drove people apart and made them leery of each other. Some said it destroyed the intimacy in their communities.

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It was immensely disheartening -

The horror and sadness of facing so much death so consistently was a huge blow to people’s optimism of life, especially after seeing it taken away from the healthiest of people.

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We've learned some hard lessons -

And we're unfortunately still learning. 

See also: The man who predicted the pandemic foresaw a third World War

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We've learned some hard lessons -

And we're unfortunately still learning. 

See also: The man who predicted the pandemic foresaw a third World War

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