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Provinces chart path to living with COVID-19 Some provinces began unveiling plans to loosen COVID-19 mandates this week as the threat of Omicron eases across the country. Earlier in the week Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said the province would lift vaccine and mask mandates this month. Ontario's health minister said Wednesday the province is "not in the clear" to remove the COVID-19 vaccine certification system just yet. The next day, the province’s top doctor said guidance for lifting all mandates could be coming soon. Meanwhile, Alberta ended its vaccine certificate system and Quebec, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Manitoba have laid out plans to lift certain pandemic measures over the course of the next month or so. But some experts are questioning the politics behind these decisions. Global News reporter Aya Al-Hakim has more here. 
Men at higher risk for mental illness post-breakup When men leave a relationship, they are at increased risk of mental illness, including anxiety, depression and even suicide, according to a recent study out of the University of British Columbia. Roman Mironov can relate to this. When his marriage came to an end seven years ago, he said he suffered mild depression. "It was totally devastating because I actually expected that my marriage would last forever," the now 39-year-old told relationship coach told Global News. John Oliffe, the paper's lead author, noted marital separation can have severe mental health consequences, quadrupling the risk of male suicide. "If we think about suicide prevention – knowing that (men’s suicide rate is) three to four times the rate of women – I think it's such a given that the relationship breakdowns do put them at risk," he said. 
Q: As things start to reopen, what are the risks, if any, of fully vaccinated individuals spending time with other fully vaccinated individuals who are exposed frequently to unvaccinated individuals? “The way that I look at it, we are entering an endemic phase and I think you should hang out with who you want to hang out with, regardless of their vaccination status,” says Dr. Sumontra Chakrabarti, an infectious diseases physician at Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga, Ont. Chakrabarti notes the vaccine is “excellent” at providing personal protection against severe disease and hospitalization, but less so when it comes to transmission. “So people who are unvaccinated or who are vaccinated, they can spread the virus to each other,” he said. “If anything, somebody who is unvaccinated is the person potentially taking a risk because they don’t have protection.” He adds that now that we’re two years into the pandemic, many individuals who are unvaccinated have probably been exposed to COVID-19. “They would have some level of immunity and are protected as well,” Chakrabarti says. “So I think the bottom line is that the risk is very, very low. If you’ve been vaccinated yourself and all of these things will be a personal risk assessment, you do what you feel comfortable with.” “Going into the post-pandemic phase, we’re all going to end up being with our friends and family. And I think what’s important is connecting with your friends and family regardless of their vaccination status.” | 
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