Vulnerable Americans live in the shadow of COVID-19 as most move on
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00:00I think people have just become very weary of it, they're very tired of it,
00:05and they don't want to take the precautions.
00:07And that's fine. I totally get it.
00:10I, unfortunately, do not have that luxury.
00:16My name is Susan Scarborough. I live in Sunset Beach, North Carolina.
00:21I have a primary immune deficiency,
00:24which basically means my body does not make enough of antibodies.
00:28But I also have an autoimmune problem.
00:31In fact, I have three different autoimmune diseases.
00:34So to help with that, I get a biweekly infusion.
00:38Then I also have numerous shots that I take,
00:42plus, of course, numerous pills.
00:44I have numerous deficiencies.
00:46I have seen people change in these past few years.
01:04When the country first started learning about COVID,
01:09I had a person who literally walked by me,
01:12and he went,
01:15around me.
01:16It was actually wrong and uncool to wear masks.
01:20When the mandate went away,
01:23I again had the dirty looks.
01:26There were people who wouldn't allow you in their store if you wore a mask.
01:30COVID-19 is a very dangerous virus,
01:34particularly to individuals that don't have a good immune response
01:38or can't respond to infection very strongly.
01:41I think that there should be no reason why we can't be accepting of a person
01:45who's decided to wear a mask to minimize their risk of infection,
01:49particularly when they're out in public places.
01:54My life before I got sick was definitely
01:58way more adventurous than what it is right now.
02:01I was originally a forensic and production videographer for the FBI.
02:07Unfortunately, I had to retire early due to my illness.
02:10I'm not able to see my kids as much as I want to
02:14because, unfortunately, that requires travel, which means a plane.
02:17It is very much an invisible disease.
02:19You can look at me right now. I don't look sick.
02:21You're not looking at me the day that I get my treatment.
02:24You're not looking at me the day after.
02:26You're not looking at me for the four to six to eight weeks it takes
02:29just to get over a cold.
02:34I try to be very much a very positive person,
02:38and I do all the things to maintain that positivity.
02:43I like to take walks, either in a neighborhood or at the beach.
02:46The salt air is amazing for my lungs.
02:49My husband and I like to go dancing, and because it's warmer down here,
02:52most of the venues around here have an outdoor setting.
02:57There's a lot of people in our country
02:59who may be living right next door to you,
03:01and you don't understand that they may have an invisible disease.
03:05Any minute, anybody could cough just incidentally,
03:08and that cough could be the one thing that could make me sick.
03:12I will never get over my immune deficiency.
03:15This is something I will have until the day I die.