I am Dr. Monique May, Board-certified Family Physician and Founder of Physician in the Kitchen™. Through my best-selling book, MealMasters: Your Simple Guide to Modern Day Meal Planning, and NEW cookbook, Doc Fix My Plate! The Physician In The Kitchen’s Prescriptions For Your Healthy Meal Makeover, and online cooking classes, I help busy households enjoy healthy eating without impacting their hectic schedules.
Can you believe the kickoff to the holiday season is less than two weeks away? The world is a much different place from what it was this time last year, and many of us are wondering what the holidays will look like this year. Specifically, how do you celebrate Thanksgiving (and Christmas) during a pandemic? How do you celebrate with loved ones while ensuring everyone’s safety? Traditions are familiar routines and practices that certainly help to unite and comfort us, something we desperately need now more than ever. They may be passed down from generations or started new with your own family or friends. But how do you keep traditions when we are in untraditional times? Below I share my tips on how to maintain some sense of normalcy while staying safe during this unprecedented period of time.
As I write this, I can’t help but think back to last Thanksgiving and what a wonderful time we had! My parents hosted at their home, and their table was full of delicious homemade foods and surrounded by friends and family, including my cousin Eric (pictured above), who was visiting from Alabama. He was a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, proudly sporting his gear wherever he went. The Giants were playing the Buffalo Bills on TV that day. He, my friend, and her boyfriend all hit it off immediately because they all were Dallas cowboy fans. Needless to say, as a proud New Yorker, I always want anyone but the Cowboys to win, so when they ended up losing, my dad and I made sure to rub it in their faces. Unfortunately, that was to be our last Thanksgiving with Eric, because he passed away due to COVID in June. He was only 54 years old, but he did have certain risk factors, such as being obese, diabetic, and on dialysis. My family, like the 244,301 others (as of this writing) in this nation has been directly impacted by COVID. As you read this, either your family has been affected, or you know someone else’s who has. Too many will have to deal with the loss of a loved one who won’t be at the table this holiday.
So how do you minimize your risk of catching the disease while celebrating and giving thanks this year?
- Celebrate (and shelter) in place: The best and most effective way to prevent exposing yourself and others would be to stay at home and just celebrate with those in your home. As much as you may want to see your parents, grandparents, and others, for their safety and yours, it is best you forgo that trip to grandma’s house this year. The elderly and those with chronic medical conditions such as heart or lung problems, diabetes, weak immune systems, and high blood pressure need our protection and vigilance. Love them from a distance of at least 6 feet.
- Host a virtual thanksgiving celebration: We are doing everything online now: working, attending meetings, going to school, and attending graduations, weddings and funerals via Zoom, FaceTime, and other virtual platforms. Coordinate with your family members and have a Zoom Thanksgiving instead. Have everyone join and eat their dinner together virtually as a family.
- Virtual potluck: Make your favorite dishes now, freeze them, and ship to family members in advance. By doing so, on Thanksgiving day they can have your award-winning macaroni and cheese or that yummy cornbread dressing that everyone loves.
- Have it catered: Order food from national chains that offer contactless delivery so everyone can have the same dish delivered to their homes.
- Preserve family history: Keep family traditions going by recording your family’s elders. Whether they are passing down recipes or describing family history and lore, use this time to capture them on video. You can then download it and share it with the entire family.
- Attend virtual religious services: If attending a house of worship is part of your holiday tradition, log on instead of attending in person.
If you do decide to celebrate with others, keep the following in mind:
- Quarantine NOW, so that you have enough time to observe a 10-to-14 day quarantine before Thanksgiving. This means staying at home and having NO contact with the outside world. This does not mean going to the grocery store or running other errands.
- Avoid gatherings of 10 or more people and observe your local state recommendations on group size restrictions.
- Celebrate outdoors, weather permitting.
- Get tested 3-5 days before you go. Keep in mind that a negative test is only valid if there are no new potential exposures. If there are, the clock starts over.
- Drive instead of fly. Wear your mask, use hand sanitizer, and wash your hands often. Pack snacks to avoid having to stop along the way. If you do stop, use credit cards to pay and avoid eating inside the restaurant. If you do fly, try to have an empty seat between you and the next passenger. Wipe down the seat handles, seat belts, tray tables and any other surfaces before using them. Avoid touching your face. The same applies if you have to use the restroom.
- Drink plenty of water. Staying hydrated helps to boost your immune system so you can fight off infections.
- Rethink and relax social etiquette: instead of crowding around the table, consider spacing apart as much as possible. If there is a large dining room table, I suggest having no more than 4 people at the table. For smaller tables, just have 1 or 2 people seated, and spread the others around the living room, family room, or den, to really maximize that physical distance as much as you can. Decorations throughout the house can help tie the rooms together and make everyone feel included. Consider the deck if the weather is nice enough. If you have a larger family it is not recommended to have groups of more than 10 in attendance.
Hopefully, by next Thanksgiving life will be a lot more recognizable and we can resume our routines and traditions. Until then, please stay vigilant, safe, and socially distant.
Have a safe and healthy Thanksgiving and holiday season!
For more information, be sure to visit me at DrMoniqueMay.com, and join the #MealMastersCommunity at www.Facebook.com/groups/mealmasters today.
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