Storytelling helps change perceptions and behaviors during pandemic
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ATLANTA (WGCL) — More than half a million Americans have died from COVID-19, and millions more have been infected in the year since the virus made it’s way to the United States. The numbers are staggering, and at times hard to grasp.
That’s what has led filmmaker Morgana Wingard and her husband Jaco to share the stories of survivors with their project, COVID-19 Survivor Diaries. “When you hear about something from somebody you know, it makes it real,” explains Wingard.
The duo learned the value storytelling has on health initiatives when they worked in Liberia during the Ebola outbreak. “It made a huge impact on changing the outlook on the virus, and led to people changing their behaviors,” says Wingard.
They began their journey last year in New York City. Since then, they have traveled to 28 different states and shared more than 140 stories. That includes Atlanta native Gail Brooks, who contracted coronavirus early on in the pandemic. “All of a sudden my chest tightened and I couldn’t breathe,” Brooks recalls. “It was the first time in my life I contemplated my mortality and thought I might not make it.”
A year later, Brooks is a COVID-19 long hauler. She still suffers from fatigue and brain fog. “My speech patterns were interrupted. I was struggling to recall words in normal conversation,” she explains. Doctors estimate two thirds of COVID patients will suffer from long hauler syndrome, experiencing symptoms well beyond the two week incubation period.
Brooks recognized the lack of valuable information in communities of color, leading her to partner with Fulton County for an initiative called Alive and in Color. The program seeks to reach black and brown communities with trustworthy information, through human connection. “People connect to people,” Brooks says.
Both Brooks and Wingard understand the importance of connecting people in hopes of teaching lessons and changing perspectives. “We have to understand how viruses like this spread and how we can protect ourselves, communities, loved ones so that this doesn’t happen again. And it’s important to remember so we don’t make the same mistakes,” says Wingard.
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