The message, which she addressed to “dear friends, Canadians, and allies everywhere,” relayed a promising update from her doctor and was met with an outpouring of relief from supporters in the comments section.
“I am feeling so much better and have received the all clear from my physician and Ottawa Public Health,” Gregoire Trudeau’s statement began. “From the bottom of my heart, I want to say thank you to everyone who reached out to me with their well wishes. And to everyone who is suffering right now, I send you all my love.”
Gregoire Trudeau said she will adhere to national health advisories regarding the new coronavirus and continue “staying at home for the time being.” Reflecting on her 14-day quarantine, Saturday’s correspondence also acknowledged the difficulties associated with isolation, which has become familiar practice for approximately one-third of the world’s population in response to COVID-19.
“These are challenging times,” Gregoire Trudeau’s statement acknowledged. “I know it’s not easy to be alone – we are all social beings, me included! But just because we’re increasing the physical distance between us doesn’t mean we have to do the same emotionally. From social media to a simple phone call, there are so many ways for us to stay connected while we’re apart and actually deepen our relationships.”
According to the latest data shared by Johns Hopkins University Sunday morning, March 29, more than 690,000 novel coronavirus cases have been confirmed globally, yielding close to 33,000 deaths and more than 143,000 recoveries. So far, Canada has reported 5,878 positive cases, 466 recoveries and 64 deaths.
Backed by Canada’s public health agencies, Prime Minister Trudeau has urged the nation’s residents to limit interpersonal contact in an attempt to halt the virus’ expansion. On March 16, after confirming his wife’s diagnosis and announcing that he would begin a two-week quarantine himself despite lack of symptoms, Trudeau unveiled regulations that prevent foreign nationals from entering Canada (this does not apply to United States citizens). The new guidelines also asked Canadian citizens to avoid non-essential travel abroad, required returning travelers to self-isolate for 14 days upon arrival, and urged the general public to minimize all interpersonal contact.
“The Government of Canada will do everything necessary to protect the health, safety, and well-being of Canadians, and is working around the clock to limit the spread of this pandemic,” the Prime Minister’s office wrote in an official news release dated March 16. “This is a critical time, and our top priority remains the safety and security of all Canadians.”
