He was in the arts industry, but overnight his work dried up. Saint has an antibody deficiency, meaning that his body cannot produce antibodies to battle infections – he has an antibody infusion every four weeks. (Stuart Saint)įor two years, Stuart Saint’s world has been very small.Ī 44-year-old gay man living with HIV in Margate, he is one of more than half a million people in Britain who are immunocompromised. “I am also terrified,” she continued, “how do you even speak to people anymore?” Stuart Saint Stuart Saint felt abandoned by the world during the pandemic – but he channelled his frustration into his business. She’s especially excited to see her best friend of 18 years. “I haven’t seen people in months, years even, because of lockdown,” Jessica said. For now, though she is fearful, Jessica is excited to return to the outside world. Disabilities advocates have suggested making a new class of long-lasting preventative antibody treatments such as Evusheld more widely available. The last restrictions being lifted has been a source of stress to many vulnerable people who are more susceptible to illness. She said this threw her mental health into jeopardy: “I literally did nothing all the time.” Outdoor walks were a source of nourishment to her – and a way for her to ease her arthritis – yet the first lockdown forced her to stay inside. I was halfway through my first year and it was terrifying. “I just fall ill all the time,” she added. “When the lockdown was first announced, I was scared as me, my mum and my little brother are all at high risk. I’ve got costochondritis, which is an inflammation of the tissue between the ribs.” She also has “a heart murmur, asthma, arthritis, hypermobility”. Jessica had good reason to fear the virus. “I had tracheal reconstruction when I was a baby,” she explained, “which means I’ve got respiratory issues.
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“I didn’t want to hide something for the rest of my life. So many hid being LGBT+ to their families, and now no one would ever know. “When I saw a lot of people dying, people weren’t able to be themselves,” she said. Jessica, a 21-year-old student journalist living in London, had a very good reason to come out as bisexual during Britain’s first lockdown – she didn’t want to die with the world not knowing who she was. “People are still dying.” Jessica Jessica, who has several health conditions, remains fearful yet hopeful about the future. “We need to get out of the idea that coronavirus doesn’t exist anymore,” Kiran added. Kiran “hates the thought” of being back in the situation they once were in, struggling for cash, while also being forced to pay for testing to survive.Īnd while legally it appears that the pandemic is over, in the last seven days more than 830 people have died of COVID-19.
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Two years after the first lockdown, all legal restrictions have been rescinded – and on April 1, free universal testing will end.
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I could treat myself to a takeaway or deodorant. Drag literally saved me.” They quickly discovered that, for queer people experiencing homelessness outside of London, there are next to no support services for them.Īfter being a sex worker for six months, their friends suggested they try out drag. “At this point, things were starting to reopen, and I was soon doing £30 gigs every month,” they said. “It was an added bonus.
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For months, Kiran lived between their “drag family”, friends and various housing associations.