The quad-demic' is here and with it I have become a disease detective | Zoe Williams

Neologisms may have the excitement of the strange, but there is nothing exciting about the quad-demic if you're afflicted by it. The idea of getting out of events may sound thrilling, but you'd still prefer a benign condition over the quartet of flu, Covid, RSV, or norovirus.

With warnings of a tidal wave of disease this winter, people seem to be ill everywhere. This is precisely why they’re calling it a quad-demic. I want to know where on the quad people stand when they show symptoms.

I find myself constantly asking about people's illnesses, wondering where they might fit within the quad-demic framework. This curiosity might stem from post-pandemic effects or mere superstition surrounding infections.

Instead of engaging in useful activities, like washing my hands, I’m fixated on a collection of symptoms and origins—acting as a makeshift symptom-tracking app, highlighting a strange obsession with illness.

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