I’m not sure anyone could have predicted what the beginning of 2021 would look like, particularly as we ushered out 2020 believing it was one of the most challenging years on record.

And now, as our new year begins, we are seeing an unprecedented surge in COVID deaths, stoking our fears of an elderly loved one contracting the virus. We see that our local hospital’s ICU beds are full and wonder what will happen to us if we become ill.

We see record business closures resulting in the unemployment of friends and family. We see the storming and vandalizing of our Capitol, making us feel unsafe and stirring up emotions of shock and disbelief.

And we’ve missed, for months on end, being able to hold, hug and be with those we love.

If we look back at the past 10 months, it’s no surprise many of us are experiencing chronic stress.

There’s no debating that seniors are most at risk during this pandemic. While COVID-19 deaths have spanned all age groups, the hardest hit has been the 65-and-older population, which accounts for over 80% of the U.S. death toll from the disease.

A friend offered her opinion that this pandemic may just be nature’s way of getting rid of the weak, that seniors had lived a full life and this was their time to go. In other words, she felt that older adults are collateral damage in this global health crisis.

I found this to be shocking. She immediately walked back her words, but it does show that this opinion is out there.

Let’s look at what these older adults may have endured in the course of their lives.